Category: News

Two weekends, dozens of stages, and enough food trucks to fuel a small country — welcome to Austin City Limits 2025. The most popular music fest in Texas goes as big as the state it calls home, and it’s about to take over Zilkner Park with genre-blending lineups, pop-up markets, after-hours parties, and throngs of music lovers hoping to vibe out to Sabrina Carpenter in their ten gallon hats. But remember, this isn’t a sprint, it’s a marathon. Whether you’re chasing front-row selfies, discovering new acts in the shade of a massive oak, or just soaking in the music while dodging the Texas heat, you’ll need a strategy to make the most of every set, every bite, and every moment. So consider this your roadmap to thriving during ACL weekend one.

Austin City Limit Lineup / Set Times

ACL is one of those “something for everyone” music festivals with over 100 performances spanning genres from pop and rock to hip-hop and EDM. So, yeah, if time management isn’t your strong suit, you’ll need to check in with the fest’s lineup schedule pretty often. Weekend one covers three days and seven stages with Hozier, Doechii, Sabrina Carpenter, and T-Pain all headlining. The fest as a companion app to help keep track of who’s on and who’s next but fair warning, it won’t make choosing between catching Djo’s set or Japanese Breakfast’s any easier.

Must See Non-Headliners

While the headliners will grab your attention, ACL is also packed with under-the-radar gems that could steal the weekend. Don’t sleep on Wet Leg, whose witty indie-rock hooks are made for sun-soaked festival sets or MJ Lenderman with his free-flowing slacker rock energy on stage. Artists like LP Giobbi and Alameda bring genre-blurring beats for those chasing the dancefloor, Gigi Perez and Chuwi deliver soulful lyrics and infectious melodies, and Magdalena Bay provides pure pop escapism. The question isn’t, “Who, beyond the headliners, is worth making time for at this year’s ACL fest?” it’s “Who isn’t?”

Best Austin City Limits Food Spots

ACL Fest 2025 isn’t just about the music — it’s a full-on food fest too. With 70+ vendors (including 17 newcomers) spread across ACL Eats, ACL Eats South, and ACL Sweets, there’s no shortage of bites between sets. Chi’Lantro brings its Korean BBQ–Tex Mex mashup, Koko’s Bavarian serves up bratwurst and pretzels, and newcomers like Brotherton’s BBQ and JABS Burgers add their own flair. Sweet cravings? Amy’s Ice Creams and Tiff’s Treats have you covered. Basically, come hungry and you’re guaranteed to leave happy.

Where & When Is Austin City Limits?

Weekend one of Austin City Limits kicks off Oct. 3-5 in Zilker Park, a sprawling green oasis in the heart of Austin along the Colorado River. Getting there is fairly easy — ride-share, shuttles from downtown hotels, and limited on-site parking are all options. Once inside, the festival stretches across multiple stages and food courts, so plan your route ahead, wear comfortable shoes, and don’t be afraid to use the park’s pathways and maps to navigate between sets, eats, and activations.

And if you aren’t able to attend in person, check out the livestream options.

Fall is here, which means two things: pumpkin spice is covering everything and there’s a cornucopia of movies and TV shows to consume. The next few months have it all – blockbuster spectacles, awards-season heavy hitters, and a buffet of binge-worthy series engineered to make you say “just one more” until it’s suddenly 3 a.m. Oh, and Stranger Things is finally coming back to test just how much nostalgia Netflix can squeeze out of Hawkins before the portal slams shut. This season, it’s less about “what to watch” than “what not to miss before it gets spoiled on social media.

To help sort through the overabundance of choices, we’ve rounded up the shows and films with release dates worth marking on your calendar.

TV Releases

Chad Powers

Release Date: Sept. 30
Why Watch: Adapted from an Eli Manning-starring sketch done for ESPN in 2022, this show about a disgraced college QB-1 pulling a “Mrs. Doubtfire” to sneak back onto the field seems like a fun sidetrack from star Glen Powell’s cinematic charm offensive. It’s also another chance for him to get goofy with disguises, ala last year’s Hit Man. Will this have the heart and ensemble to be the next Ted Lasso, a show that shares a similar lineage and taste for redemptive character arcs? — Jason Tabrys

Monster: The Ed Gein Story

Release Date: 0ct. 3
Why Watch: Creators Ryan Murphy and Ian Brennan have a sort of twisted obsession with digging up the graves of history’s most notorious real-life villains. If their glossy, gore-splattered biographies of killers like Jeffrey Dahmer and the Menendez Brothers didn’t prove it, the latest installment in Netflix’s Monster anthology series should. It sees Charlie Hunnam transform himself into soft-spoken body-snatcher Ed Gein via one drooping eyelid and an oversized Oedipal complex. Gein earned the nickname “The Butcher of Plainfield” thanks to his inventive mutilation of victims – both living and buried six feet under. The show also touts him as the “blueprint for modern horror” as his exploits inspired everything from The Silence of the Lambs to Psycho. The real question here isn’t, “Will this show be any good?” but rather, “Will Murphy ever give audiences a serial killer who isn’t a bona fide thirst trap?” — Jessica Toomer

Nobody Wants This: Season 2

Release Date: Oct. 23
Why Watch: Rom-coms can fizzle when they stray too far from the thrill of the courtship, but S2 of this Emmy-nominated out-of-nowhere charmer is going to test that theory, following Adam Brody and Kristen Bell’s characters as their relationship hits the next level. As with S1, there will be plenty of opportunities for awkwardness, meddling family members, culture clashes, and adorableness. Here’s hoping there’s more screen time for former Veep and Succession standouts Tim Simons and Justine Lupe, and their mismatched alliance. — Jason Tabrys

IT: Welcome To Derry

Release Date: Oct. 26
Why Watch: The Stephen King bookshelf is often fertile ground for exploration and re-exploration, but it’s not limitless, with results typically tied closely to the individuals wielding the torch. Mike Flanagan and Frank Darabont? Masters at synthesizing King. Can Andy Muschietti (and producers Jason Fuchs and Brad Kane) stretch the IT story past the first two films that he directed and help create something with enough depth and intrigue to keep us coming back for more week after week? Or is Welcome To Derry just going to be an IP curiosity that flames out quickly? Thankfully, Bill Skarsgaard is back to mess with a new cast of kids… and adult viewers who have completely understandable phobias when it comes to creepy clowns. — Jason Tabrys

I Love L.A.

Release Date: Nov. 2
Why Watch: If there’s one thing Rachel Sennott knows, it’s how to mine chaos for comedy. In I Love L.A., which she created, co-wrote, and stars in, Sennott plays Maya, an aspiring talent manager stumbling through a quarter-life crisis the astrology girlies might dub her “Saturn return.” While she’s getting pummeled by the universe, she’s also orbiting a constellation of toxic friends – people just as messy, directionless, and dopamine-starved as herself. Sennott’s fresh off a string of successful indie films – Bodies, Bodies, Bodies, Bottoms, and Shiva Baby – but this show marks her first creative endeavor solo, so expect it to be painfully raw and compulsively watchable. — Jessica Toomer

Pluribus

Release Date: Nov. 7
Why Watch: Little is known about this partial Better Call Saul team reunion between creator Vince Gilligan and series star Rhea Seahorn, but sometimes the names on the title card should be enough. Add to that the concise yet tantalizing show description that promises a story about “the most miserable person on Earth” as she tries to “save the world from happiness” and the promise of Gilligan, who cut his teeth as a writer/producer for The X-Files, returning to the sci-fi genre and Pluribus is one of the most anticipated shows of the season. — Jason Tabrys

Stranger Things: Season 5

Release Date: Nov. 26
Why Watch: Stranger Things is one of the most important shows of this century, but like another series on that list (Lost), it feels like we’ve been waiting for it to close its twisty story for almost as long as it’s been on the air. Does sticking the landing hold ultimate sway over how we remember a show’s complete journey? When’s the last time you thought about Lost or Game Of Thrones without getting a sour taste over their finales? Here’s another one: when’s the last time you thought about Stranger Things without being annoyed by the long gaps in between seasons? They’d better nail this. — Jason Tabrys

Fallout: Season 2

Release Date: Dec. 17
Why Watch: When Prime Video’s irreverent post-apocalyptic adventure returns later this year, its “heroes” will be trading the desert-dusted Wasteland for the neon-soaked ruins of New Vegas. (Warning: any glowing lights are likely radioactive.) The setting change introduces a handful of new villains, from warring factions like Caesar’s Legion and a group of Elvis impersonators known as The Kings, to Justin Theroux’s scheming overlord Robert House – who maybe, probably sparked the end of the world all those years ago. Ella Purnell and Walton Goggins will be back as the mismatched pair hunting down answers to the mysteries that still plague them as they blast their way through the Mojave with those Brotherhood fanatics hot on their trail. This show is one f*cking ride. Jump on now. — Jessica Toomer

Movie Releases

One Battle After Another

Release Date: Sept. 26
What Watch: Leave it to Paul Thomas Anderson to turn Thomas Pynchon’s postmodern literary headache into a political thriller that feels like a chaotic mixtape of revolution war cries, daddy issues, and kung-fu nuns – all set to the squealing tires of one of the most climactic car chases in cinematic history. One Battle After Another follows Leonardo DiCaprio’s Bob, a washed-up radical trying to hide out with his daughter until his crippling paranoia is justified and his past does catch up with them. Add in Sean Penn as a military bulldog named Colonel Lockjaw, Benicio del Toro as a cool and collected dojo owner, and Teyana Taylor stealing scenes by firing off a machine gun while heavily pregnant, and you’ve got the year’s unlikeliest future Oscar-winner. — Jessica Toomer

The Smashing Machine

Release Date: Oct. 3
Why Watch: The hype for this Benny Safdie-led biopic has been massive owing to the shock value of seeing Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson commit to a multi-layered role as Mark Kerr, a real-life successful MMA fighter struggling to navigate his personal life, ambitions, and the physical and emotional toll of his job. We’re eager to see if Johnson is as advertised and at the dawn of a new era as a serious actor, while also wondering if The Smashing Machine finds a way to feel fresh within a genre usually hobbled by its tropes. — Jason Tabrys

Frankenstein

Release Date: Oct. 17
Why Watch: Leave it to Guillermo del Toro to take the most famous monster in literature and make him… hot? Hot but sad? Devastatingly poetic? Really, it’s a combination of all three because del Toro is the kind of creative genius who can find beauty in the most abhorrent. He prefers his Gothic horror lush and atmospheric and possibly capable of inspiring a new TikTok aesthetic. His Frankensteinian experiment for Netflix pairs Jacob Elordi’s lanky, mournful Creature with Oscar Isaac’s tormented Victor Frankenstein, staging their doomed creator-creation dynamic like a toxic situationship with grave consequences. The film swaps lightning bolts and stitched-up clichés for grand sets, practical effects, and del Toro’s trademark cocktail of bittersweet romance and dread while also giving scream queen Mia Goth plenty to sink her teeth into. — Jessica Toomer

Good Fortune

Release Date: Oct. 17
Why Watch: The space for theatrical comedies with big budgets and big ideas behind them has shrunk drastically over the last 15 years, so it’ll be incredibly interesting to see how successful this heavenly life-swap comedy performs with audiences. Writer/Director Aziz Ansari is certainly bringing the star power, casting himself as a struggling victim of the hustle economy who gets to take over the life of a super-rich guy (Seth Rogen) thanks to a meddlesome angel (Keanu Reeves). — Jason Tabrys

Bugonia

Release Date: Oct. 24
Why Watch: If you thought Poor Things was Yorgos Lanthimos at his freakiest, well, then, you haven’t seen Dogtooth. Or this film, which puts poor Emma Stone through the ringer for our own twisted enjoyment. The director’s cinematic muse (along with fellow regular Lanthimos collaborator Jesse Plemmons and newcomer Aidan Delbis) occupy this three-way standoff that feels like a Reddit conspiracy thread made flesh. Plemmons and Delbis play two basement philosophers convinced Stone’s icy CEO is not just a capitalist overlord but an actual alien sent to annihilate humanity. But who’s delusional and who’s just the better liar? — Jessica Toomer

Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere

Release Date: Oct. 24
Why Watch: For the last 50+ years, Bruce Springsteen has been one of the most ubiquitous figures in music and culture. Will audiences buy The Bear star Jeremy Allen White as a young Springsteen without harshly judging his fidelity to their perception of what “The Boss” sounds and looks like? Is there enough willingness to expand on the idea of who Springsteen is with this story of personal excavation during the recording of Nebraska early in his career? We’re excited to find out. — Jason Tabrys

A House of Dynamite

Release Date: Oct. 24
Why Watch: Kathryn Bigelow’s films are often preoccupied with the unthinkable – terrorist manhunts and bomb technicians with an appetite for risk – but she cranks up the disaster scenario meter for her latest Netflix thriller, which first premiered at this year’s Venice Film Festival. A patchwork series of multiple POVs, the film covers a tense 20-minute span following the launch of a nuclear weapon that may be heading for the American Midwest. It’s the job of Rebecca Ferguson, Idris Elba, Anthony Ramos, Greta Lee, and Jared Harris to stop it while drawing lines between personal loyalties and more global pressures. It’s Bigelow at her most meticulous, layering human frailty with sharp performances and whiplash-inducing editing that never lets the audience breathe. — Jessica Toomer

Sentimental Value

Release Date: Nov. 7
Why Watch: It’s a great time for international cinema, with audiences primed for several global breakouts each year. Zone Of Interest and Anatomy Of A Fall can find acclaim in the same year. So can Flow, I’m Still Here, and, ahem, Emilia Perez (ducks). This year has at least a handful of buzzy international titles, and Joachim Trier’s follow-up to The Worst Person In The World might be leading the pack. Stellan Skarsgård and Renate Reinsve are both getting plenty of award buzz, and Trier’s last movie primed young cinephiles to anticipate his next move. — Philip Cosores

The Running Man

Release Date: Nov. 14
Why Watch: Another project with roots as a Stephen King novel, The Running Man is probably better known for its original theatrical adaptation as a somewhat cheesy ‘80s action film, glimpsing into a dystopic future where people’s favorite TV show has them watching convicts run a violent gauntlet toward freedom. In the latest version, we’re getting another dose of Glen Powell goodness as he takes over for Arnold Schwarzenegger in a more grounded but still high-octane future that feels less theoretical. Co-written and directed by Scott Pilgrim and Baby Driver filmmaker Edgar Wright and co-starring Katy M. O’Brian, Lee Pace, Josh Brolin, and Colman Domingo, The Running Man has a lot of potential to stand out on its own as an absolute blast. — Jason Tabrys

Wicked: For Good

Release Date: Nov. 21
Why Watch: The first Wicked soared because it made Oz feel fresh again — turning a glittery fairy tale into a story of friendship, ambition, and two women daring to rewrite the script they’d been handed. Wicked: For Good blows that up a bit, taking the magic and turning it dark via some pretty moody breakup ballads. Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo) is now a fugitive, labeled the Wicked Witch of the West, while Glinda (Ariana Grande) inhabits the palace halls of Emerald City, perched on a throne that feels all too precarious. With uprisings, power grabs, fractured friendships, and the arrival of a certain ruby-slippered outsider comes the creeping sense that this is one yellow brick road that doesn’t have a happy ending. — Jessica Toomer

Train Dreams

Release Date: Nov. 21
Why Watch: Director Clint Bentley mines something extraordinary from the unremarkable life of his protagonist in Train Dreams. Billed as a turn-of-the-century introspective epic, the film follows Joel Edgerton’s Robert Granier, a railroad worker forging a path through the American West as he navigates the triumphant and troubled waystations of his life. There’s joy and tragedy, adventure and a bit of aimless wandering, reflections on tolerance and humanity’s interconnectivity. It’s gorgeous and quietly moving and likely too subtle to land with any blockbuster-sized audience but it deserves to be seen and appreciated anyway. — Jessica Toomer

Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery

Release Date: Dec. 12
Why Watch: While Glass Onion has its defenders and functions best if received as a fun lark divorced from high expectations, the film didn’t come close to leaving the same lasting impact that the first Knives Out did. For his next installment, however, Writer/director Rian Johnson seems intent on leaning back into the vibes of the original with a gambit dripping in gothic creepiness and a strong cast surrounding Daniel Craig’s familiar and adored Benoit Blanc (Josh O’Connor, Kerry Washington, Andrew Scott, to name but a few). — Jason Tabrys

Hamnet

Release Date: Dec. 12
Why Watch: Chloe Zhao’s Hamnet skips the predictable period-drama pomp and dives straight into the messy business of grief, proving that even the world’s most renowned scribe couldn’t write his way out of loss. An adaptation of Maggie O’Farrell’s novel, the film follows William and Agnes Shakespeare (Paul Mescal and Jessie Buckley) as they navigate the devastating fallout of their young son’s untimely death. It’s already been blamed for more than a few emotional breakdowns after premiering at this year’s Telluride Film Festival, so maybe have your therapist on standby for after the credits roll. — Jessica Toomer

Avatar: Fire And Ash

Release Date: Dec. 19
Why Watch: They say Avatar has no cultural relevance. They say that Big Jim is wasting his life on Pandora. They say a lot to try to discredit the biggest and best new IP of this century. But to those people I have one response: If every few years, we get to spend three hours with Jake Sully, Neytiri, Kiri, Spider, Payakan, and all the rest of our blue (or, um, whale-like) friends, we should be thankful. Plus, these movies are consistently great, make billions of dollars, and win awards. What’s not to love? — Philip Cosores

The Housemaid

Release Date: Dec. 19
Why Watch: Sydney Sweeney scrubbing toilets. Amanda Seyfried popping pills and locking poor girls up in her attic. Hot gardeners. Cheating husbands. A kitchen Martha Stewart would kill for. The Housemaid – Paul Feig’s adaptation of Freida McFadden’s bestselling novel – is guilty-pleasure cinema done right. The trick to enjoying it, though? Going in blind. — Jessica Toomer

Marty Supreme

Release Date: Dec. 25
Why Watch: Another elevated sports movie from a Safdie brother, Marty Supreme comes from Josh Safdie and stars Timothée Chalamet as an ebullient tennis player in the 1950s chasing big dreams. Co-starring Tyler, The Creator, Odessa A’zion, and Goop founder Gwyneth Paltrow in her most substantial non-Marvel role in years, the film looks the part of an hours-long historical epic with a magnetic character study at its heart. In other words, be prepared for Marty Supreme to EAT when it comes to awards season. — Jason Tabrys

No Other Choice

Release Date: Dec. 25
Why Watch: Park Chan-Wook might not have the Oscars that his compatriot Bong Joon Ho has, but the sense from most film fans is that his time will come. From his vengeance masterpieces to his recent bangers The Handmaiden and Decision To Leave, Director Park has an incredible hit rate, and the buzz out of fall festivals is that his latest lives up to his own high standard. — Philip Cosores

Lorde has been consistent with album releases throughout her career, as each one since her first has arrived four years after its predecessor: Pure Heroine in 2013, Melodrama in 2017, Solar Power in 2021, and Virgin in 2025. For her next LP, though, she doesn’t want fans to have to wait that long.

Towards the end of a new interview with The Los Angeles Times, Lorde said:

“There’s one thing I feel totally committed to — it’s not allowed to be four years [for the next one]. It has to be sooner.” When the interviewer pointed out that Lorde has probably said that before, the singer responded, “I did. But this time I really mean it. I’m over it. It’s time for me to make a different kind of statement that’s less careful or considered.

Elsewhere in the chat, the interviewer brought up Lorde’s Zane Lowe interview from earlier this year and Lorde interjected, “I f*cked up that interview.” She continued, “I was in too girly an outfit, honestly, and I had this hair clip in, and I felt all tight and shy. I couldn’t access it. […] Why the f*ck did I put the hair clip in? And the girly top! If I’m in a girly top on the wrong day, it’s all over.”

Read the full interview here.

After appearances at Austin City Limits over the next two weekends, King Princess is heading out on the road for a tour. Before all that, though, she dropped a new video for Girl Violence standout “Jaime.”

The video was directed by Celine Sutter. Sutter says of it:

“For her album Girl Violence, King Princess has spent the rollout tormented by demonically seductive, maniacal women. In the ‘Jaime’ music video, she finally embodies that feminine figure; this time directing the violence inward, upon herself — or perhaps upon a Bushwick line cook lookalike. Reviving the genderqueer essence of Cheap Queen, this new KP screams, seduces, and hotboxes her boyfriend’s car. At its core, this song plays with the allure of self-destruction: chasing approval that will never come, with King Princess stepping into the role of the villain — and she has never looked better doing it.”

King Princess added, “People on the internet kept saying that Gio looked like me so I decided to cast him in a video so I could torment myself. I can’t stop and I can’t walk away, I love it and I hate it. Sometimes when it comes to girl violence, I am the woman torturing me.”

Watch the “Jaime” video above. Find the Girl Violence cover art and tracklist below, along with King Princess’ upcoming tour dates.

King Princess’ Girl Violence Album Cover Artwork

King Princess’ Girl Violence Tracklist

1. “Girl Violence”
2. “Jaime”
3. “Origin”
4. “I Feel Pretty”
5. “Cry Cry Cry”
6. “Get Your Heart Broken”
7. “Girls”
8. “Covers”
9. “Say What You Will” Feat. Joe Talbot
10. “RIP KP”
11. “Alone Again”
12. “Slow Down And Shut Up”
13. “Serena”

King Princess’ 2025 Tour Dates

10/03 — Austin, TX @ Austin City Limits
10/10 — Austin, TX @ Austin City Limits
10/25 — Nashville, TN @ Marathon Music Works
10/26 — Atlanta, GA @ Buckhead Theatre
10/28 — Richmond, VA @ The National
10/29 — Brooklyn, NY @ Brooklyn Paramount
10/31 — Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club (late show)
11/01 — Philadelphia, PA @ Union Transfer
11/02 — Boston, MA @ House of Blues
11/04 — Toronto, ON @ HISTORY
11/05 — Royal Oak, MI @ Royal Oak Music Theatre
11/07 — Chicago, IL @ The Salt Shed
11/08 — Minneapolis, MN @ Uptown Theater
11/10 — St. Louis, MO @ The Pageant
11/11 — Kansas City, MO @ The Truman
11/13 — Denver, CO @ Ogden Theatre
11/14 — Salt Lake City, UT @ The Depot
11/16 — Seattle, WA @ Showbox SoDo
11/17 — Portland, OR @ Roseland Theater
11/19 — San Francisco, CA @ The Regency Ballroom
11/21 — Anaheim, CA @ House of Blues
11/22 — Los Angeles, CA @ The Wiltern
12/03 — Dublin, Ireland @ Vicar Street
12/05 — Glasgow, Scotland @ Queen Margaret Union
12/06 — Leeds, UK @ Beckett
12/07 — Manchester, UK @ New Century Hall
12/09 — London, UK @ Brixton Electric
12/13 — Brussels, BE @ La Madeleine
12/14 — Paris, FR @ Le Trianon
12/16 — Amsterdam, Netherlands @ Melkweg Max
12/17 — Berlin, Germany @ Astra Kulturhaus

Girl Violence is out now via section1. Find more information here.

Check out King Princess’ Sound Check episode below.

Doja Cat’s love affair with the popular multiplayer shooter game Fortnite is well-documented, but her involvement is about to get more personal. During an appearance on The Tonight Show to promote her new album Vie, Doja was given the opportunity to debut her new in-game skin, The Mother of Thorns.

In a segment titled “Real Or Fake,” host Jimmy Fallon reads off the names of Fortnite skins that Doja must identify as either authentic or made up by the Tonight Show crew. Names include “Pumpkin Splice,” “Dr. Theodore Flyesbee,” “Lil Whip,” and “Johnny Pockets,” all of which she correctly tags, with the last being The Mother Of Thorns. Doja explains the new skin, “I’m in my villain era. Fortnite made me a boss for their big Halloween event, “Fortnitemares.” Come try me!” Jimmy then surprised Doja with a real-life replica of the character’s in-game throne. The skin will be available on October 9. Check it out below.

In an extended interview posted to YouTube, Doja also broke down her strategy when playing Fortnite, which she described as “a little sweaty.” She joked, “I only started getting good like a year and a half ago.” She described her former playbook as being a “stealth nurse,” which mostly involved hiding, collecting health and shield items, and supporting her teammates. However, as she explained to Jimmy, “It doesn’t get you anywhere. You have to make a choice to start playing.”

Doja isn’t the only star to get their own Fortnite skin; other in-game stars have included Sabrina Carpenter, Bruno Mars, and Ice Spice.

Check out Doja Cat’s extended interview with The Tonight Show above.

King of Kentucky, the annual limited-edition single-barrel bourbon from Brown-Forman, is a perennial bourbon of the year contender, and 2025’s release is finally here.

This year marks the 8th edition of the premium release, which was crafted from 63 single barrels filled in 2007 and bottled at proof levels ranging from 124.4 to 135. The 2025 release also follows a recent trend of increasing age statements for the limited expression, which has previously been a showcase for 14-, 15-, and 16-year-old bourbons (with one outlier, an 18-year expression, released in 2022) in the past few years. The grain recipe in this expression consists of 79% corn, 11% rye, and 10% malted barley, which is notable because it’s the same mashbill used for Old Forester 1924 and Early Times Bottled in Bond Bourbon, two other expressions under the Brown-Forman umbrella of offerings.

In creating this year’s release, Master Distiller Emeritus Chris Morris ended up selecting 63 barrels from the 4th floor of Warehouse J and the first floor of Warehouse G at the Brown-Forman Distillery, with the liquid drawn from two different production dates. Those 63 barrels produced just 5,000 bottles, which will be distributed nationally and carry a suggested retail price (SRP) of $399.

In the past three years, King of Kentucky has made some dramatic leaps on the Uproxx “Best Bourbon Of The Year” lists, jumping from 30th in 2022 to 14th in 2023 before landing in the top three of 2024.

While it remains to be seen how high this year’s expression will rank, it’s almost inevitable that the crown jewel from the Brown-Forman portfolio will be featured yet again.

Let’s give it a taste, shall we?

• • Ranking The 50 Best Bourbons of 2025 (So Far)
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  • The Best Double Gold Bourbons From The 2025 San Francisco World Spirits Competition, Ranked
  • All 42 Bourbons From Buffalo Trace, Tasted & Ranked
  • Breaking Down The 24 Bottles That Every Bourbon Fan Needs In Their Collection

2025 King Of Kentucky 17-Year Single Barrel Bourbon Review

ABV: 63.5%
Average Price: $400 SRP

The Whiskey:

This single-barrel bourbon was initially distilled in 2007 and then aged for 17 years before being bottled at a proof range of 124.4 to 135. The 5,000-bottle release comes from just 63 barrels that were aged in either Warehouse J or Warehouse G at the Brown-Forman Distillery.

Tasting Notes:

Nose: The nose on this whiskey is full of chocolate fudge, cloves, butterscotch, vanilla extract, and freshly cracked black pepper. It’s an intriguing and inviting melange that asserts its stern proof-point while drawing you deeper into the glass courtesy of its decadent layers of flavor. Fresh black cherries, hazelnut spread, honeysuckle, and torched orange peel notes can also be found as you allow the liquid to rest in the glass and evolve over time. Simply put, the nose is magnificent.

Palate: On first blush, this whiskey is chock-full of a surprisingly bright cherry note with sugar cookies, fresh cinnamon bark, and Tahitian vanilla all flowing over the palate. Accents of fresh almonds, honeyed baklava, a rum-like funk, and hazelnut spread can be found if you go searching, but again, I’m deeply impressed by the buoyancy of the cherry note, which is more Chelan-like than the more standard black cherries or cocktail cherries you tend to find in mature bourbon.

The texture is buttery and full-bodied, making it a reward to roll the liquid over your tongue and slowly savor it with some chewing, where the vanilla and nutty notes are dialed up a bit.

Finish: the finish is incredibly lengthy, and it’s the only part of each sip where the oak influence can be prominently detected. That, of course, isn’t a bad thing, as that slight bit of astringency is balanced by sweet vanilla, almond extract, stewed plum, and faint leather notes. There’s even some honeyed black tea and vermouth-like flavors that emerge at the end, where the bright cherry note remains present but takes a backseat to the bit players.

Bottom Line:

Going into this expression with high expectations is, well, to be expected. What caught me off guard, however, was the sprightly cherry note that accompanied the 2025 King of Kentucky’s prototypical multi-layered sipping experience. It threaded the needle throughout each stage of enjoyment, from the nose to the finish, and provided Oscar-award-winning entertainment alongside supporting flavors that were equally impressive.

To cast a critical blow, the astringency on the finish does increase in prominence over time, and depending on your tolerance for oak, that might mar the experience for you. But at 17 years of age, seasoned bourbon drinkers will anticipate far more oak than you find here, and the overall balance of flavors from start to finish is never disrupted.

The delicate and well-defined Chelan cherry-led sweetness of this year’s expression is deserving of top marks, making it a particularly unique entrant in the vaunted lineup.

The 2025 King of Kentucky is yet another crowning achievement.

Ranking: 98/100

Empress Of has a big fall coming up, as in a few days, she’s set to start a run of dates opening for Lorde’s Ultrasound World Tour. She also has some new music, as today (October 2), she shared “Blasting Through The Speakers.”

In a statement, Empress Of says of the song:

“I’m very excited to share this song with the world. This year I learned a lot about the things that matter. Music has always been one of those things. After the fires in Altadena, I couldn’t make music for some time. I was afraid to go there. When I made this song, it felt like music was a friend I hadn’t talked to in a while, but was always there to pick up the phone. Thank you for listening to me all these years. Thank you music for always being there.”

No new album has been announced yet, but a press release notes the song “opens up a new chapter for Empress Of.”

Listen to “Blasting Through The Speakers” above and find Empress Of’s upcoming tour dates below.

Empress Of’s 2025 Tour Dates

10/07 — Atlanta, GA @ Gas South Arena *
10/09 — St Louis, MO @ Chaifetz Arena *
10/10 — Milwaukee, WI @ UW-Milwaukee Panther *
10/11 — Minneapolis, MN @ The Armory *
10/12 — Minneapolis, MN @ The Armory *
10/18 — Los Angeles, CA @ Kia Forum *
10/19 — Berkeley, CA @ The Greek Theatre *
10/21 — Portland, OR @ Moda Center *
10/22 — Seattle, WA @ Climate Pledge Arena *

* supporting Lorde

Ever since the advent of recorded music, listeners have been ranking their favorite artists’ albums. It’s always fun, though, to find out how those artists rank their own projects. Doja Cat, who is currently promoting her fifth studio album Vie, was recently challenged to do so by Interview magazine in a clever format: A game of “F*ck, Marry, Kill.” Her answers turned out surprising, but also very typically Doja Cat.

For one, Doja immediately subverted the prompt; Interview‘s Ary Russell’s proffer entailed Vie, Scarlet, and Planet Her, Doja’s most recent albums, but Doja subbed in her first album, Amala, for Scarlet. “That’s not fair,” she explained. “You should have put Amala in there instead of Scarlet. Kill Amala. F*ck Vie. Marry Planet Her.”

It’s a nifty dodge for the rapper-turned-pop-star. After all, Amala was the least successful of her albums, while Scarlet undoubtedly holds a soft spot for her as her most rap-forward project to date. Meanwhile, Hot Pink remains a fan favorite, with her star-status-cementing hits like “Say So” and “Streets.” It also allows her to protect her latest album, which is both a departure and a reset for her; Vie is arguably as much a straightforward R&B record as it is a pop one, but it also reclaims the funk/R&B architecture that undergirds much of “pop” music, giving it the acknowledgement that it was denied for decades.

Doja will give listeners the chance to see that dynamic play out live on her Tour Ma Vie World Tour next year.

The annual Austin City Limits Music Festival is going down over the next two weekends, first from October 3 to 5 and then 10 to 12. For those who can’t make it down to Texas this year, the good news is that there’s an option to livestream it from home.

For the fourth straight year, the festival is partnering with Hulu to offer a livestream of the festival. It will be available to all Hulu subscribers from October 3 to 5 and more information can be found here.

The broadcast schedule isn’t available yet, but when it is, it’ll be viewable on Hulu’s Austin City Limits landing page. Currently, Hulu only indicates they’ll be streaming the first weekend.

On the festival lineup are Sabrina Carpenter, Hozier, Doja Cat, Luke Combs, The Strokes, Doechii, Feid, Cage The Elephant, T-Pain, Empire Of The Sun, Djo, Mk.gee, Role Model, Wet Leg, Japanese Breakfast, MJ Lenderman, Magdalena Bay, Dr. Dog, King Princess, Marina, The Dare, Jensen McRae, Hotline TNT, and more.

Meanwhile, some tickets are still available, even this close to the festival. General admission tickets for the first weekend are sold out, but some GA+ and VIP tickets are still available. General admission tickets are still available for the second weekend. Find more information here.

Austin City Limits Music Festival 2025 Lineup Poster

Reneé Rapp seems to have become one of Seth Meyers’ favorite Late Night guests. They have a natural chemistry that’s a joy to watch and he’s had her on the show a handful of times over the past couple years. She first appeared in October 2023, then in January 2024, then she made a third appearance last night (October 1).

Their 15-minute chat was all over the map. At one point, they discussed Rapp’s athletic past. She noted that as a kid, she played soccer, basketball, and golf. Rapp revealed she golfs “less now” but that she used to “all the time,” saying it was her “big thing.” Meyers wondered if Rapp was the kind of golfer who lost her cool out on the course and Rapp responded, “Girl, what do you think? What do you think?!”

Rapp elaborated:

“My mom stopped coming to my matches, God love her, ’cause I was… oof, I was losing it. I was losing it. I would throw… I’m not… I wish I was kidding, because looking back on it, it’s like, if I had a kid that did that, I’d be like, ‘Something’s wrong with her.’ I would throw my golf bag down a hill.”

Her rage wasn’t exclusive to golf, as Rapp continued, “But it was the same thing for basketball: They stopped coming to my games ’cause I would foul out so quickly.”

Rapp has previously shown herself to be a ball-knower, like when she explained the game to Ed Sheeran while they were sitting courtside last year.

Check out the full interview above.