SXSW 2026: Opportunity is yours to make, don't wait.

South by Southwest (SXSW) can seem like an intimidating opportunity at first. The pressure to make the most of everything, talk to everyone or the very idea that “this may be the first step to forever.”

Going into SXSW, I wanted to make this as open an educational experience for myself. I didn’t want to add the pressure of the weight of the event to the occasion. I didn’t want to put the weight of every interaction, or failed interaction, as a detriment to my future. So, going into the festival, I decided to make this a working vacation, deciding that I would network and also use this as a platform to launch myself as an asset to those I interacted with.

A majority of my experience was mentor sessions. While it was originally an accident because the scheduling website kept crashing, and I was just trying to reserve as many of my favorites as possible, it worked in my favor. I learned more from my 1:1s with mentors than I did in the sessions that I attended.

Many of the sessions this year were geared toward artificial intelligence (AI) and the cultivation of a newer brand-building system, fandoms. A product of K-pop/Asian culture that bled into the western industry due to the popularity of K-pop groups like BTS and Japanese animation, anime, it has completely changed the way in which brands are interacting with fans.

While I originally went into these conversations with an open mind to learn, there wasn’t much that I didn’t already know, either from my own research as an entertainment journalist, talking with experts at OU, or from my own personal experience as a digital native. The gap between digital natives and digital immigrants was very apparent in some of the conversations.

I attended the “Death of Passive Entertainment – A Future for Participants” and “Building Hollywood Buzz Without the Hollywood Style Campaign” sessions at SXSW. Both focused on the future of brand building in the newer era of independent media. Most of the conversations were about the newer attention to fandoms and the aspects of content creation as a forefront of marketing. 

They were informative in a way that it felt like a review of some of the topics that I have discussed in my early writing at the Post about internet culture and its applications to real-life companies. However, there wasn’t anything really to take away about my understanding of the branding industry or any new information that may truly impact my future career.

Most of those revelations came from speaking with mentors. 

I am currently in communication with the founder of the Legacy Project, about developing an organization that my roommate and I have started, as well as potentially creating an Ohio University chapter. The goal is to connect students with elders in the Athens community, collecting and publishing their stories. At the same time, my roommate and friends have been working on a broader initiative to strengthen the relationship between Ohio University and the Athens community.

We are still in the planning stages, but it’s becoming one of the most meaningful products from my experience at SXSW.

I also spoke the director of music for advertising at Universal Music Group, who encouraged me to stay active on campus and consider joining our campus radio station, something I plan to do in my senior year.

Through these mentor sessions, I learned a lot about how to approach and market myself. One of the biggest lessons I’ve taken from my time at Ohio University, especially through the honors college, is to approach opportunities with an asset-based mindset.

In some conversations, I found myself thinking more in terms of a “business proposition” rather than simply asking questions.  I knew I wanted to walk away with something actionable for my organization. These weren’t just networking moments for the future; they were opportunities to build something in the present.

All of my mentor sessions were valuable. They helped me better understand my place in the field, how my identity can function as an asset, and new ways to approach problem-solving in professional spaces.

I was even able to curate some content while I was there; doing a concert review for Trap & B artist, Don Toliver, and ALT Rock band, The All American Rejects. 

I am truly humbled and blessed to have had such a wonderful opportunity, and I am just so grateful.