The transformation of Austin, Texas

On Point with Meghna Chakrabarti

WBUR

News, On Point, Daily, Npr, Talk Show

4.3 • 3.9K Ratings

🗓️ 31 December 2025

⏱️ 39 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Austin, Texas was known as a funky, liberal haven in a deep red state. Now, there’s big tech money pouring in and huge growth. How has life changed there?

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Support for this podcast comes from Is Business Broken, a podcast from the Marotra Institute at BU Questrum School of Business. A recent episode asks, are boardrooms ready for the new geopolitical reality? Stick around until the end of this podcast to preview the episode.
0:18.1	WBUR Podcasts, Boston.
0:25.4	This is on point. I'm Magna Chakra-Bardi.
0:28.5	It's New Year's Eve in 1980 in Austin, Texas.
0:33.5	A man wearing a hat decorated with an armadillo shell and deer antlers stepped to the microphone at a music club.
0:42.7	Live from deep in the heart of Texas.
0:49.2	Live from the Armadillo World headquartersquarters, Commander Coddy.
1:01.4	Everyone who love the Armadillo, I want you to give me a cheer.
1:10.6	The Armadillo is in fact called the Armadillo World. a cheer.
1:14.6	The Armadillo is in fact called the Armadillo World Headquarters in Austin.
1:17.5	Sadly, it was the music venues last night.
1:21.7	The club was closing after roughly a decade in Austin.
1:24.9	The band Commander Cody and his lost Planet Airman had the stage.
1:30.6	Night's like this when my brain gets fried.
1:39.2	The Armadillo hosted hundreds of musical acts during its run. People like Willie Nelson, Jerry Jeff
1:46.1	Walker, Frank Zappa, Waylon Jennings, and Charlie Daniels. Armadillo's a special place to play.
1:51.8	There's no doubt about it. When they put that few inches of asphalt over the top of this place,
1:57.8	they'll be burying something. It'll be a long time before anybody ever realizes what they're buried.
2:03.2	You know, it was a place to kind of start happening.
2:06.1	Everybody respected it.
2:07.8	You know, it's the end of an era.
2:09.4	They know two ways about it.
	...

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