Iconic Willie Nelson Mural Gets Second Life in Austin

Sometimes there are still happy endings to depressing stories. That is the case for the iconic Willie Nelson mural in downtown Austin that was demolished on February 3rd, along with the 100-year-old building it was painted on the side of.

The original 60-by-20-foot monument to Willie was commissioned as the backdrop of “Heart of Texas Rockfest” that was part of South By Southwest in March of 2016. It was painted by local mural artist and musician Wiley Ross, and went on to become one of the most beloved pieces of public art in the Live Music Capital of the World. Janis Joplin was also added to the mural at one point.

But a fire in February of 2024 resulted in structural damage to the building at 407 E. 7th Street. The building most recently housed the bar Mug Shots. Instead of renovating the property, the owners, Jaffa Parks LLC, decided to demolish it. Austin’s Historic Landmark Commission did evaluate both the building and mural for preservation, but ultimately allowed demolition plans to move forward.

Initial plans called for a high rise to be built on the property. But as of this moment, those plans aren’t moving forward. Instead, the footprint of the demolished building was paved over, potentially to make room for more parking spaces, or perhaps a food truck court. Meanwhile, the wall of the adjacent property at 405 E 7th Street is exposed just a few feet from where the original building and the original mural stood.

Both the property owners at Jaffa Parks LLC, and the owners of the adjacent business—whiskey bar Seven Grand—gave their blessing to original mural artist Wiley Ross to re-create the mural on the recently-exposed side of the building. So over the last few weeks, Riley Ross has been redoing the iconic mural, bringing Willie’s likeness back to life.

“If I’m being honest, I think this one is much better,” Wiley Ross says, admiring his handiwork. It’s slightly smaller due to the smaller profile of the building at 405 E 7th, but the mural is much more detailed and vibrant-feeling.

“The horses represent freedom, and I know Willie is really fond of horses,” Ross says. “I’m going to fill it up with some more animals, like a Longhorn. Give it a Noah’s Ark feel. The owl is for Night Owl Therapy, who was one of the sponsors of the mural.”

The mural is at a location just down the street from downtown Austin’s biggest homeless/outreach shelter. Wiley Ross hired some of the local homeless to help prep the new building for painting and other tasks, and to make them feel like partners in the mural to hopefully protect it. Though Ross says at this point it’s mostly done, he looks forward to filling in some more details before an official ribbon cutting ceremony planned for the near future.

“It’s kind of surreal,” Ross says about how beloved the mural has become to Austin. “I never expected to do this. I just wanted to make sure it looked like Willie Nelson. It’s super humbling.”

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