AUSTIN, Texas — Austin hip-hop artist The Teeta is making his ACL Festival debut for the biggest show of his career.

Teeta has spent years making music and helping other local acts find a voice in the live music capital. He says that hard work paid off when ACL bookers called for him to perform.

"He says 'Look, we're not doing you a favor. You work your butt off, you make amazing music and we need you on this stage,'" said Teeta, recalling the phone conversation.

The East Austin rapper is fresh off his new album, 24, a work he describes as a look into the mindset of a rapper from his neighborhood. Now, getting to display that music on the big stage will make Teeta into a hometown hero, and his city is letting him know it.

"Everybody's proud, man," he said. "Everybody is very supportive and proud of what we're doing and I'm grateful for that."

Even though he calls it his biggest performance, with his timeslot coming moments before acts like Machine Gun Kelly and Megan Thee Stallion, he's not letting the moment get too big for him. Teeta has some experience with music festivals, performing at The Summer Smash Festival in Chicago in 2018. That experience along with the numerous local performances have all prepared him for a performance that can take his career to the next level.

"It's definitely a 10, and the difference between this and other festivals I've been in is I'm actually being highlighted," he said. 

The Teeta performs during ACL Festival's weekend two on October 8.