Texas Music News — August 12, 2026
Kaitlin Butts opens for Ella Langley at Fort Worth’s Dickies Arena Saturday, then headlines Dallas the next night.
Butts is riding a career high many artists chase for decades. She signed with Republic Records last fall. Then she broke through with 2024’s Roadrunner!, a concept album reimagining Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Oklahoma! for the modern honky-tonk. Now she’s stacking guest spots as fast as she writes songs.
Even a can’t-miss year comes with mishaps. “This weekend, when I grabbed my curling iron from the wrong end — that hadn’t happened before,” Butts told the Dallas Observer. “That was the worst thing that’s ever happened 30 minutes before a show.” Still, the show always goes on.
Booked, Busy and Ready for Anything
On Saturday, Aug. 15, Butts opens for Langley at Fort Worth’s Dickies Arena. The show is sold out. She isn’t just direct support. She also appears in Langley’s “Choosin’ Texas” video, alongside Miranda Lambert and Tanner Usrey. The single has held No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for 16 weeks.
Butts sees the moment as bigger than herself. “People are craving that traditional country music with piano and fiddle and acoustic guitars,” she said. “It does give me a lot of hope for female artists being at the top in general.”
For an artist who once fumbled a curling iron, headlining Village Beach Club a night later is the easy part.
Details at Dallas Observer.
More Texas Music News
Dallas Afrobeat artist Baba Kuboye is releasing his new album one song at a time. He launches a new monthly residency called “Afroverse Live: Afrobeat Sundays.” It begins Sunday, Aug. 16, at Retro Street Bar & Kitchen in Frisco, Texas. Each stop previews a track from his forthcoming album, Afroverse II: Global Cycle. His grand-uncle is Fela Kuti, Afrobeat’s founding father. Details at KXT 91.7.
San Antonio honors ranchera legend Beatríz Llamas with the fourth annual “Voz de la Paloma” vocal competition. The free event happens Saturday, Aug. 15, at UTSA’s Buena Vista Theater downtown. Llamas, known as “La Paloma del Norte,” became the first Tejana to play Madison Square Garden in 1967. Details at San Antonio Current.
A new festival is pairing Texas twang with Texas mead. The inaugural Texas Mead & Music Festival debuts Saturday, Sept. 19, at Scarborough Faire in Waxahachie, Texas. Five stages will host Red Dirt talent, including Matt Hillyer and Fort Worth’s Kendi Jean Duo. Thirteen Texas meaderies will pour samples alongside the music. Details at KXT 91.7.