John Mayer appeared at the 2001 South by Southwest Festival.
En route to SXSW 2017, Italian post-punk band Soviet Soviet, traveling on the Visa Waiver Program, was denied entry to the United States, detained overnight and deported after an immigration officer at SeattleTacoma International Airport claimed they were planning on conducting a paid performance, which would have required a work visa
 Nile Rodgers gave the keynote address for the music portion of the festival, while filmmakers Gareth Edwards and Lee Daniels gave the keynote presentations for the film portion

