ATX Pulse 5/4-5/26 (free): ACL Fest Announces 2026 Lineup // $20M Powerball Ticket Sold in Leander // 2nd Arrest Made in 2024 Homicide // Austin FC Defeats STL 2-0

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MONDAY, MAY 4, 2026 - TUESDAY, MAY 5, 2026

Compiled by Matt Mackowiak

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WEATHER

Today: H: 88° / L: 73°. Mostly cloudy.

Wednesday: H: 88° / L: 73°. 30% chance of thunderstorms.

Thursday: H: 71° / L: 61°. 40 of scattered thunderstorms.

Friday: H: 80° / L: 60°. 30% spotty thunderstorms.

TOP NEWS

"Charli XCX, Rufus du Sol among headliners for ACL Fest 2026" via Culture Map Austin – Austin City Limits Music Festival, one of Austin's biggest events is having a banner year for its 25th Anniversary. Five months before the festival — held October 2-4 and October 9-11 — Austinites now know who to expect on the lineup.

The highly anticipated headliners include:

• Charli xcx

• RÜFÜS DU SOL

• Twenty One Pilots

• Lorde

• Skrillex (Weekend One only)

• Kings of Leon (Weekend Two only)

• The xx

Of course, there are plenty of other acts worth seeing who aren't headliners. Some standouts chosen by the festival include:

• Turnstile

• Labrinth

• Lola Young

• The Chainsmokers

• Geese

• Young Miko

• Bleachers

• SOFI TUKKER

• Parcels

• The War On Drugs

• Leon Thomas

• Brandon Flowers (Weekend One)

While there are certainly less expensive and crowded places to see Texas musicians, ACL Fest is a rite of passage — and for bigger or traveling artists, sometimes a homecoming. Here's who's representing the Lone Star State this year:

• Bo Staloch (W1)

• World Famous Pets (W2)

• Calder Allen

• Solya (W1)

• Asleep At The Wheel (W1)

• DJ Cassandra (W1)

• Cure For Paranoia (W1)

• NIGHT TRAVELER (W1)

• Grocery Bag (W1)

• Coleman Jennings (W1)

• lluvii (W2)

• Montclair (W2)

• Almost Heaven (W2)

• Left Lucid (W1)

• The 4411 (W1)

• The Moriah Sisters (W1)

• Huston Tillotson University Jazz Collective (W2)

In our opinion, a few acts got short shrift in the announcement. Here are the names we're excited to see while digging deeper:

• Lykke Li

• Jesse Welles

• Saint Motel

• LP

• Natasha Bedingfield (W2)

• Rebecca Black (W1)

Three-day tickets for both weekends go on sale today, May 5, at noon at ACLFestival.com. (Culture Map Austin)

"$20 million Powerball jackpot-winning ticket sold at QuikTrip in Leander" via KEYE — Someone is now a multimillionaire after purchasing a jackpot-winning Powerball ticket in Leander.

The Texas Lottery says the winning ticket was purchased at QuikTrip #4165 at 10742 E. Crystal Falls Parkway. It matched all six numbers drawn, 25-37-42-52-65 and Powerball 14.

The $20 million grand prize will be split with another winner in Florida. According to the Multi-State Lottery Association, the ticket sold in Texas is worth approximately $4.5 million before taxes.

The Texas winner has not come forward to claim their prize; the Texas Lottery says that person has 180 days from the draw date to claim their winnings. (KEYE)

"2 Austin ISD teachers honored with H-E-B Excellence in Education Awards" via KVUE — Two Austin ISD teachers are being recognized for their work in the classroom.

Megan Vasquez and Alasin DeVeny both took home thousands of dollars for themselves and their schools after being named among the winners for the 2026 H-E-B Excellence in Education Awards.

Vasquez, who teaches at Becker Elementary in South Austin, earned The Leadership Award for teachers with 10 to 20 years of experience in the classroom. She won $10,000 and the school earned a $10,000 grant.

DeVeny, who teaches at Joslin Elementary in South Austin, earned The Lifetime Achievement Award that is given to teachers with more than 20 years of experience. She won $25,000 and the school earned a $25,000 grant. (KVUE)

THE BLOTTER

"Austin Police make second arrest in 2024 murder investigation" via KXAN –- A second man was arrested Wednesday and charged with first-degree murder in connection with a fatal November 2024 shooting in east Austin. According to an arrest warrant affidavit, 21-year-old Elijah Rivera was linked to the shooting using location data and search warrant data collected from Meta.

The murder charge was related to the death of 20-year-old Matthew Escalante, who died at the hospital one day after the shooting. KXAN reached out to Rivera’s attorney. This article will be updated if a statement is received.

According to court documents, a Meta account belonging to Rivera sent messages two days after the murder asking different people if they were interested in purchasing a Glock 43, which detectives said was chambered only in 9mm—the same caliber located at the scene. The affidavit said Rivera’s location data showed he was at the scene at the same time of the murder.

According to Rivera’s Travis County jail records, two Applications to Revoke were submitted on May 1 in connection with two January sentencings, where Rivera received deferred adjudication. In Texas, deferred adjudication is a type of probation that allows the person sentenced to keep the conviction off their criminal record. Those charges were aggravated robbery and engaging in organized criminal activity in connection with an October 2024 offense. (KXAN)

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