Each year, Nicholas Reyes, known to many as Nicky Christmas, orchestrates an unofficial music showcase during the South by Southwest (SXSW) festival to support the Texas Prison Education Initiative (TPEI). For the past four years, this event has taken place in East Austin, aiming to benefit incarcerated women at a correctional facility in Lockhart who cannot attend the festival.
Reyes, who serves as an assistant math professor at the University of Texas at Austin, began volunteering with TPEI in 2019, teaching inmates through the program. “Everything is really lovingly tailored to our students, and we as volunteers care a lot,” he shared. “I always want more showcases to have a charitable cause, so I thought it would be nice to set up donations.”
The Texas Prison Education Initiative offers free college courses to inmates, taught by volunteer graduate students and UT professors. “It’s a really lovely environment to teach in,” Reyes remarked. “The students are lively and energetic.”
In addition to his academic role, Reyes is a well-known figure in the Austin music scene. He took to the stage as Nicky Christmas while studying at UT, with his debut performance at SXSW in 2015. Three years later, he initiated the tradition of hosting free unofficial showcases during the festival.
“The official SXSW organization brings in a lot of people from out of town,” he explained. “The unofficial showcases provide bands with more opportunities to perform. This event has become the highlight of my year.”
In 2022, Reyes transformed the showcase into a fundraiser for TPEI, driven by his passion for the students he teaches and his desire to support the program. The goal is to maximize donations, with approximately two-thirds of the funds going to the musicians and the remainder benefiting TPEI. Many bands choose to donate their earnings from the event back to the initiative.
Historically, the showcase has raised between $600 and $1,000 for TPEI, according to Reyes. Dorothy Rau, the program coordinator and the only paid employee at TPEI, noted that the organization relies entirely on external funding to cover essential costs, from school supplies to enrollment fees. “We have about a hundred students every semester,” Rau stated. “We need to pay to register them at the university to ensure they can earn college credit and obtain transcripts upon release.”
The education provided is instrumental in helping students reintegrate after incarceration, allowing them to use their credits for further education or as qualifications on job applications, which also helps bolster their confidence. Rau emphasized that the classes offer inmates much-needed enjoyment in an otherwise challenging environment.
Reyes recognized that his concert would attract a larger audience during SXSW, which could lead to increased donations for TPEI. “It goes a long way toward purchasing school supplies,” he noted. “Our students are not required to pay anything for these classes.”
The upcoming event at Sahara Lounge will feature bands exclusively from Texas and New York, a shift from previous years that showcased a broader international lineup. “The first three years, we had a large number of Mexican bands, but those acts are not traveling to Texas anymore,” Reyes explained.
This year, five out of the eight performing bands hail from Austin. Matt Galceran, a singer and lead guitarist for Queen Serene, expressed that this year’s emphasis is on local talent. “It feels like a locals kind of festival rather than a massive international event,” he said.
Queen Serene’s lead singer, Sarah Ronan, highlighted the importance of unofficial SXSW shows in fostering community spirit. “Friends always come out, and the lineups are thoughtfully curated. There’s heart and soul in this; it feels like what South By was meant to be.”
While the showcase serves as a platform for local musicians, its primary purpose remains to raise funds for TPEI. With funding now predominantly reliant on donations rather than grants, Rau expressed the challenges of sustaining an organization like TPEI. “Fundraising diverts a lot of time and energy from teaching, recruiting new volunteers, and launching new classes,” she stated.
The benefit show is one of two annual fundraisers for TPEI and represents the organization’s only in-person event. Reyes aspires to continue this tradition indefinitely and is even considering the addition of a second winter event. TPEI’s leadership shares this commitment to its future.
“Getting to see so many bands I like, spending time with friends, and supporting an organization I truly care about is a beautiful combination of everything I love about Austin,” Rau reflected. The showcases have evolved to embody both a celebration of local music and a vital fundraising effort for an important cause.
