So, What’s a Midwest House?

Midwest House is a global showcase of the incredible talent and innovative thinking that the Midwest has to offer, as well as a networking tool. We’re hellbent on challenging the perception of the Midwest as boring, milk toast, and just kinda blah… We love where we live, and there’s so much going on here. That’s why we wanna share it with everybody.

We are an experiential embassy of the Midwest to SXSW – and a year-round catalyst for the regions, innovators, and creatives.

How It All Started

Midwest House, formerly known as “Michigan House,” was born in an East Austin backyard at SXSW 2015. A small collective of friends team up with twelve organizations to create a home-away-from-home for Midwesterners at the festival. 

We rented a 24' Penske Truck, filled it with Midwest-made goods, and drove the 1,300 miles to Austin, TX. For four days, we turned that backyard into a celebration of everything that the Midwest could be. 17 bands. Hundreds of guests. Two visits from the Austin PD. It was pure magic, and we had no idea, like no fricking clue, how much it was about to change our lives.

As We Move into Our Eighth Year

After eight years and multiple iterations, Midwest House has become something different. Something more defined, intentional, and polished. It has become a platform for innovative companies, a launch pad for artists and ideas, and a storytelling tool for the region itself. It's come a long way from the backyard, yet so much of what we strive for – the relationships, the creativity, and the vision – has been there from the beginning.