Briscoe is an Austin-based band fronted by Philip Lupton and Truett Heintzelman. They were one of three recipients of the $10,000 “Sounds Better with Tito’s” grant in 2025.
Justin Cook/Briscoe
Austin-founded spirit brand Tito’s Handmade Vodka has launched Sounds Better with Tito’s, a new music program that awarded $10,000 in tour grants to three independent artists who performed at this year’s Austin City Limits Music Festival: Briscoe (Austin), Aaron Page (New Haven) and Moody Joody (Nashville).
“Being from Austin, the Live Music Capital of the World, music is something that we’ve done for two decades now — from the first ACL Fest to Lollapalooza since 2005,” Tito’s sponsorship and experiential director, TJ Mathias, told the Statesman. “Music is very much in our brand’s DNA, so why not put more focus on it and expand what we’re doing in the music space outside of just traditional sponsorships?”
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Since its founding by Bert “Tito” Beveridge in 1997, Tito’s has partnered with numerous music nonprofits, including the Health Alliance for Austin Musicians (HAAM) and Sonic Guild. The brand was named official vodka of the National Independent Venue Association (NIVA) in 2025.
The company’s philanthropic arm, Love, Tito’s, also supports animal welfare, community green spaces, and global research with its own initiatives: Vodka for Dog People, Block to Block and CHEERS.
“Independent music, independent vodka and independent spirit is sort of our tagline,” Mathias said. “We’re trying to make sure we’re not just hyper-focused on one thing but looking across the spectrum of the music industry and making investments and donations to push the industry forward.”
Supporting the next generation of musicians
Sound Better with Tito’s began after the company reached out to local artists to ask about the biggest challenges of being a musician today. Mathias said that understanding and addressing those hardships benefits everyone involved, from fans to the wider music community.
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The $10,000 grants can be used for gear purchases, travel and lodging during tours, or to offset other expenses faced by emerging artists. The three selected acts also received a custom gear case, exclusive Tito’s merch and a Brane Audio wireless Bluetooth speaker.
“Providing opportunity is one of the biggest things,” Mathias said. “Our reality is that it’s never really over. As things continue to change, we’re going to adapt the program to suit those needs better. At the end of the day, we just want to be an ally and help artists get to the next stage — or even get to the next show.”
Briscoe poses for a portrait in the Statesman tent, backstage of ACL on Friday October 3rd, 2025. Dave Creaney special for Austin American-Statesman
Dave Creaney/Dave Creaney special for Austin
Austin’s Briscoe among inaugural recipients
One of the three grant recipients, Briscoe, is an Austin-based band fronted by Phillip Lupton and Truett Heintzelman. Despite forming only in 2019, the band landed a midday ACL Fest slot earlier this month, shortly after releasing their sophomore album, “Heat of July,” on Sept. 19.
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Alongside rising country artist Dylan Gossett, Briscoe is helping to define Austin’s modern country revival, continuing a legacy shaped by icons like Townes Van Zandt, Jerry Jeff Walker and Willie Nelson.
“To be recognized as one of Austin’s bands and to be part of such a great scene and music culture is an honor for us,” Lupton told the Statesman. “It’s a scene and a culture that’s gone back for decades with artists that we love and look up to.”
The band plans to use the grant for tour dates through the end of the year, with stops across the East and West coasts, the Midwest and parts of Canada. More tour dates are planned for spring 2026.
“To be in the same conversations as guys in the modern age that are becoming huge musicians like Dylan Gossett and, a couple years back, Shakey Graves and Gary Clark Jr., and then way back to Willie Nelson, Blaze Foley and all these big names that called Austin home, it’s really cool to be in the same breath as some of those people,” Heintzelman said.
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Briscoe poses for a portrait in the Statesman tent, backstage of ACL on Friday October 3rd, 2025. Dave Creaney special for Austin American-Statesman
Dave Creaney/Dave Creaney special for Austin
Community collaboration through Sonic Guild
The nonprofit Sonic Guild, which provides financial and professional support for musicians, will administer the Sounds Better with Tito’s grants.
“As people are moving into town, the demographics are evolving, and we need them to engage in the music community the way that longer-term Austinites have,” Sonic Guild Executive Director Dave Verrati told the Statesman. “We have business leaders that can be impactful in supporting and nurturing the music ecosystem here in Austin. Tito’s, taking this step and being very public about it, makes me hopeful that it will show other businesses that there’s an opportunity for them to lean in and support here.”
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Mathias agreed that preserving Austin’s live music scene will take collective effort. “It’s something that’s going to take not just one brand or charity,” he said. “Everyone has to band together to figure out how we can keep (local music) intact so artists still have a pathway in a city built on live music, as we see it change drastically.”
“The musicians in Austin took us on tour and put us in their riders,” Mathias added. “We tend to tie our story back to struggling musicians and, over the years, we’ve had a lot of charities and musicians that have helped us out. We’re now trying, in turn, to do the same thing as we’ve grown and gotten bigger.”