Two decades ago, Taco Bell set out to do something straightforward yet unprecedented: support working musicians on the road, with no contracts, no obligations, and no strings attached. That commitment gave rise to Feed the Beat, a program that has supported more than 2,000 musicians since it was founded in 2006. Today, Taco Bell announced the Feed the Beat 20th Anniversary Class — 100 artists selected to join a program that has supported more than 2,000 musicians since its founding in 2006. The class reflects the breadth and diversity that have defined Feed The Beat from the beginning. This year's class includes Cashier, MX Lonely, Terror, Cdubz, Bad Nerves, The Hellp, Lowertown, Chezile, and Jai’Len Josey, among many others spanning genres from indie rock and hip-hop to country and electronic.
Feed The Beat was founded on a simple but powerful premise: musicians on tour need to eat. The program originally provided artists with $500 in Taco Bell Bucks to cover meals between performances — a practical form of support that acknowledged the economic realities of life on the road.
Over the past two decades, the program has grown considerably in scope while maintaining the values that distinguish it: always free to submit, no commitments, and a genuine investment in long-term artist development. The program champions inclusivity, opening doors for artists from all backgrounds to share their unique sound and story. In addition to meal support, Feed The Beat offers participating artists the opportunity to have their music featured in Taco Bell content and events, as well as amplification through the brand's substantial social media presence.
Over the years, nearly 200 Feed The Beat artists have had their music synced in Taco Bell spots. The program has produced some of advertising's major pop culture moments that resonated with music fans: Doja Cat's cover of Hole's "Celebrity Skin" in the 2022 Super Bowl spot The Grande Escape, leading into her announcing the return of the Mexican Pizza at Coachella, caused a sensation. While Turnstile turned heads, first teaming up with Taco Bell in 2022’s Nacho Fries spot, before taking it to another level in last year’s Luxe Cravings spot featuring skateboarding legend Tony Hawk.
With the goal of always looking for new ways to help shine a spotlight on great artists, last year Taco Bell introduced the Feed The Beat Record Club. A vinyl record Tuesday Drop in the Taco Bell app, which offers Taco Bell Rewards members the opportunity to claim an exclusive Record Club box featuring artists from the Feed The Beat program. The initiative extends artist visibility to the millions of consumers engaging with the Taco Bell app.
To date, 54 Ultra, Anxious, Doja Cat, Frankie and the Witch Fingers, hemlocke springs, Hot Mulligan, Magdalena Bay, and Portugal. the Man have had their albums featured in the Record Club, with a fifth edition set to drop next month.
The 20th anniversary class of artists joins an alumni network that includes some of the most significant names in contemporary music: Noah Kahan, Mannequin Pussy, 100 Gecs, Dillon Francis, The All-American Rejects, NEIL FRANCES, Tanner Adell, RØZ, and many others — artists who, at the time of their selection, were just beginning to establish themselves.
Music has long been integral to Taco Bell's brand identity, and Feed The Beat remains its most sustained and substantive expression of that commitment. As the program enters its third decade, the 2026 class of 100 artists represents the next chapter — a new cohort of voices with the potential to shape culture in ways that cannot yet be anticipated.
