About SWRFA
Gathering voices. Celebrating roots. Sharing songs.
The Southwest Regional Folk Alliance (SWRFA) is the Southwestern chapter of Folk Alliance International.
Our mission is to build and strengthen the community around folk music and songwriting.
Each year, we present a conference in Austin, TX which connects artists, presenters, radio DJs, and fans to the rich, living tradition of folk music in our region, which covers Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas, and Mexico.
The Southwest Regional Folk Alliance was established in 2000 as the southwestern regional affiliate of Folk Alliance International (FAI), serving Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas, and Mexico. Its founding—and the first SWRFA conference—was coordinated by longtime folk-community organizer Dalis Allen.
Since then, SWRFA has held an annual conference in Austin, Texas — typically the last weekend of September — bringing together folk and Americana musicians, songwriters, presenters, radio DJs, and fans across the Southwest.
The conference format draws on FAI’s model: official showcases, in-room showcases, open-mics, panels and workshops on topics like songwriting, licensing, booking, and instrument craft, plus networking, exhibits, and community events.
A signature tradition is the “song assignment”: artists randomly draw a prompt early in the conference, write a song during the weekend, then perform it at Sunday brunch — highlighting SWRFA’s emphasis on songwriting, creativity, and community connections.
As of 2026, SWRFA continues strong — the 27th annual conference is scheduled for September 23–27, 2025 at the Holiday Inn Midtown in Austin.
SWRFA is a 501(c)(3) tax exempt charitable organization. Make a donation.
SWRFA Behind the Scenes
Watch and learn more about SWRFA… the “networking hang for the southwest folk scene.”
Texas Backstage Pass joined us this year at the 2025 SWRFA Conference. Watch their video from the conference here.