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One of the best and biggest festivals in the country, South By Southwest, (SXSW) is officially underway in Austin, Texas.

From now until March 20th, thousands of industry insiders and fans head to the Lone Star State to take in the newest and coolest in the world of film, interactive technology, conferences and of course, music. Over 2,000 artists rock over 90 different venues around downtown Austin for more than four days.

Tons of free music, epic performances and collaborations culminate in some of the most talked about moments in music for the whole year. 

SXSW is known as the epicenter of the fest, featuring the newest and hippest up and coming musical talent in hip-hop and indie rock. If you don’t have a badge for the actual fest, there are the sponsored parties that only require RSVP.

GlobalGrind has all of the coolest SXSW shows to catch, parties to attend and places to eat and drink in Austin, so check back each day until the end of the fest for the scoop on what’s happening.

Today in the FADER Fort, crazy L.A.-based rap outfit Odd Future hit the stage, fresh off their outrageous performance at MTVU’s Woodie Awards last night. (Watch it below). There was a masked midget, rainbow flashing lights and security had to help out when Tyler, The Creator jumped offstage to crowd surf. So pretty much anything could happen tonight. Head to the fort early though to check out the Brooklyn-based dream-pop group Cavemen at 3pm. Odd Future goes on at 6:45 and stick around to see punky pop duo Matt & Kim get dance crazy onstage. 

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SPIN Magazine hosts their own party and band showcase at the famous Stubb’s of Austin today. Awesome grunge rock duo The Kills, synth pop legends OMD, British rockers The Vaccines and Chicago’s Smith Westerns will join headliners TV On The Radio. You need to buy a pass, but don’t forget to check out the indoor stage where GlobalGrind favorite MNDR (above) will be performing. 

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VIBE is also hosting their Friday night party/showcase at Venue 222 on East 6th Street. VIBE is partnering with the Cashmere Agency to bring you an awesome urban-themed lineup with Slaughterhouse (above) headlining, Dee-1 and Collie Budz are also on tap, plus there will be surprise guests! The show is free with an RSVP. During the daytime you can also check out Das Racist and Ninjasonik

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One of the most anticipated parties in town is the Pepsi MAX Presents Snoop Dogg’s Funk n Soul Extravaganza with Mayer Hawthorne and the County (above) & DAM-FUNK on March 19th (7pm) at the Pepsi MAX Lot (Whitley Warehouse, 301 Brazos Street, Austin TX).  This is the first time all three artists will be performing on one stage and fans will be treated to a night full of funk, soul, West coast beats and a whole lot of Snoop D-O-DOUBLE-G! Check out the video below as DAM-FUNK and Mayer Hawthorne talk about the Extravaganza and get a sneak peek of the event that will sure to go down in SxSW history! 

In addition, leading up to the Funk n Soul Extravaganza, Pepsi MAX and GrooveShark teamed up to find one lucky act to open for Snoop Dogg during The Pepsi MAX Grooveshark Center Stage event last night.  Artists competing for the opening spot includes: Skyzoo, Pharoahe Monch, Electric Method, Deluka and Hank & Cupcakes. Fans in Austin and at home had the chance to view the performances and vote at PepsiMAX.com/SxSW to determine who will open for Snoop Dogg at the Saturday night Extravaganza! The winner will be announced on March 17, but images and video from the show are available here

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You’re up all night watching all these amazing shows and drinking copious amounts of beer. So of course, what could be better than some breakfast at 4am? The place to go in Austin is Magnolia Cafe on 2304 Lake Austin Blvd. You can get breakfast 24 hours a day and if you don’t want that, cop some soup, sandwiches, hamburgers, etc. etc.