Npr Music

T-Pain Full Concert | NPR MUSIC FRONT ROW

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Duration: 27:09
Updated: 09 Dec 2015
views: 800

To mark the one-year anniversary of the most popular Tiny Desk Concert ever and the 10th anniversary of his debut album, Rappa Ternt Sanga, we hosted T-Pain at our Washington, D.C. headquarters. The inimitable Floridian performed a short set of classics, both his own and others', and a brand new, never before heard song from his forthcoming album, Stoicville: The Phoenix. Follow @NPRandB and @NPRHipHop. SET LIST "Tipsy" -- 0:42 "Officially Yours" * -- 3:26 "Can't Believe It" -- 8:41 "A Change Is Gonna Come (Sam Cooke Cover)" -- 13:25 "Bartender" -- 18:34 "Need To Be Smokin" -- 20:59 * New song. Director: Mito Habe-Evans; Producer: Frannie Kelley; Videographers: Colin Marshall, Julia Reihs, Cameron Robert, Morgan Walker; Audio Engineers: Andy Huether, Josh Rogosin, Neil Tevault; Special Thanks: Chris Berry, Saidah Blount, Bobby Carter, Kate Drozynski, Kiana Fitzgerald, Savoy Jefferson, Ashley Messenger, Abby O'Neill, Matt Sheren, Cedric Shine, Justin Winn; Executive Producer: Anya Grundmann

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Son Little: NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert

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Duration: 13:58
Updated: 21 Dec 2015
views: 2355

December 18, 2015 by BOB BOILEN Son Little's music pushes gospel and blues into the 21st century with guitar processing, including backward drones, and choirs made from his looped voice. As wonderful as his 2015 self-titled album sounds, having him at the Tiny Desk with his acoustic guitar and unprocessed voice, accompanied only by his soulful singing sister, Megan Livingston, and percussionist Jabari Exum was gently uplifting. The man born Aaron Livingston is the son of a preacher and knows how to deliver, how to connect directly to the heart. His sound is wonderfully universal, and here, at the Tiny Desk, magnificently subtle. Son Little is available now. iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/son-little-deluxe-edition/id1023485217 Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B012BINLYU?ie=UTF8&*Version*=1&*entries*=0 Set List "Lay Down" "Your Love Will Blow Me Away When My Heart Aches" "The River" Credits Producers: Bob Boilen, Morgan Walker; Audio Engineer: Josh Rogosin; Videographers: Morgan Walker, Julia Reihs; Production Assistant: Kate Drozynski; Photo by Jun Tsuboike/NPR For more Tiny Desk Concerts, subscribe to our podcast. http://www.npr.org/podcasts/510292/tiny-desk-concerts-video

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Lianne LaHavas NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert

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Duration: 14:20
Updated: 02 Oct 2015
views: 6540

October 02, 2015 by SURAYA MOHAMED In 2012, my kids introduced me to Lianne La Havas' debut album, Is Your Love Big Enough? One play and I was hooked; I've been a fan ever since. Her music works for any activity, any emotion. The first time I saw La Havas live, I was unprepared for the experience: Her music touched my heart in a way I'd never experienced before. I cried through the entire performance. Her music was that powerful, with lyrics woven together with beautiful harmonies; it pulled emotions out of me I didn't even know existed. La Havas is soulful yet playful, raw and vulnerable in a commanding kind of way, and her new second album, Blood, is as amazing as the first. In this Tiny Desk performance, she plays two new songs — "What You Don't Do" and "Unstoppable" — as well as "Forget," from her first album. She and her talented collaborators, James Wyatt on piano and Frida Mariama Touray on backing vocals, rehearsed this special arrangement during the sound check just moments before the performance. It's wonderfully intimate, with just guitar accompanied by vocals that embellish without getting in the way. If you're like me, you will never get enough. Blood is available now. iTunes:https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/blood/id986317401 Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Blood-Lianne-La-Havas/dp/B00X6X3QWC Set List "What You Don't Do" 00:00 "Unstoppable" 04:00 "Forget" 08:41 Credits Producers: Suraya Mohomed, Morgan Walker; Audio Engineer: Josh Rogosin; Videographers: Morgan Walker, Nick Michael, Julia Reihs; Production Assistant: Kate Drozynski; photo by Jun Tsuboike/NPR For more Tiny Desk Concerts, subscribe to our podcast: http://www.npr.org/podcasts/510292/tiny-desk-concerts-video

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Leon Bridges: NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert

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Duration: 18:02
Updated: 08 Sep 2015
views: 1764

September 08, 2015 by BOB BOILEN We probably should have shot this Tiny Desk Concert in black-and-white. Listening to Leon Bridges, I hear a sound with its heart and soul rooted in 1962. There's purity in his voice that's unadorned, untouched and unaffected by 21st-century pop. It's just soul. Still, the songs from this 26-year-old Fort Worth singer feel refreshing in the context of the day. Surely there's touches of Sam Cooke's spiritual sound, but Leon Bridges has a way of making the familiar feel adventurous and new. It may be because this is all new to him. He only picked up the guitar around the age of twenty and only began listening to classic soul music after friends told him he sounded like R&B; musicians from long ago. What Leon Bridges has tapped into on his debut album with fellow Fort Worth musicians including Austin Jenkins from White Denim is a universal sound, an undeniably heartfelt sound which transcends age, race and musical tastes. He's easy to love and tough to resist and his performance at the Tiny Desk with his fabulous band is a testament to what it means to sing from the heart. Set List "Coming Home" 00:00 "Smooth Sailin'" 04:06 "Twistin' & Groovin'" 07:30 "River" 12:48 Credits Producers: Bob Boilen, Morgan Walker; Audio Engineer: Neil Tevault, Josh Rogosin; Videographers: Morgan Walker, Colin Marshall, Lani Milton; Assistant Producer: Elena Saavedra Buckley; photo by Lydia Thompson/NPR

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T-Pain: NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert

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Duration: 13:48
Updated: 29 Oct 2014
views: 7174865

T-Pain's fingerprints are all over pop and R&B; and hip-hop. He wasn't the first musician to use Auto-Tune as an instrument — he noticed it on a Jennifer Lopez remix, and remembers "Deep" well — but it was, as he says, his style. For a while, in the mid-2000s, he lived at the top of the charts. He dominated that brief moment of our lives when ringtones were a thing. He was celebrated as an innovator, and he happily took his talents where he was invited, which was everywhere. But somewhere along the way, somebody got it twisted. "People felt like I was using it to sound good," says T-Pain, in an interview that will air on All Things Considered. "But I was just using it to sound different.” He just turned 30, but T-Pain has already done enough to drop a greatest hits album next week. We asked him if he'd grace the Tiny Desk without any embellishment or effects to show what's really made his career: his voice, and those songs.--FRANNIE KELLEY SET LIST "Buy U A Drank (Shawty Snappin')" "Up Down (Do This All Day)" "Drankin' Patna" CREDITS Producers: Frannie Kelley, Maggie Starbard; Editor: Maggie Starbard; Audio Engineer: Kevin Wait; Videographers: Colin Marshall, Maggie Starbard; Production Assistant: Susan Hale Thomas; photo by Maggie Starbard/NPR

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Adele: NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert

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Duration: 14:35
Updated: 14 Feb 2011
views: 3092659

In a stripped-down three-song set at the NPR Music offices, the Grammy-winning U.K. pop star showcases her brilliant voice and seemingly effortless charisma. Watch Adele perform two new songs to go with her ubiquitous hit "Chasing Pavements." Set List: "Someone Like You" "Chasing Pavements" "Rolling In The Deep" For more videos, visit npr.org/tinydeskconcerts

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The Oh Hellos: NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert

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Duration: 16:38
Updated: 08 Dec 2015
views: 5737

December 8, 2015 by BOB BOILEN When The Oh Hellos piled out of a van at NPR, someone remarked that it was like a clown car: Band members just kept coming, including brother and sister Tyler and Maggie Heath and their mom. They were all road-weary, trading sniffles, coughs and more. But the nine-piece group brought anthemic joy to the Tiny Desk in the form of buoyant songs whose underpinnings could still be dark and lonely. Some of the music here is from The Oh Hellos' recent second album, Dear Wormwood, which was inspired in part by the writings of C.S. Lewis; it's about a protagonist who doubts a relationship before finding the resolve to never look back. Still, for all the deep sentiment, the band brings the same jubilant energy it brought to its performance at the Newport Folk Festival in July — even now that summer fun has given way to winter germs. Fortunately, the only contagion you'll encounter here is joy. Dear Wormwood is available now. iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/dear-wormwood/id1030840451 Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Dear-Wormwood/dp/B013WO8KA2 Set List "Hello My Old Heart" 00:00 "Like The Dawn" 05:43 "Exeunt" 12:54 Credits Producers: Bob Boilen, Morgan Walker; Audio Engineer: Josh Rogosin; Videographers: Morgan Walker, Julia Reihs; Production Assistant: Kate Drozynski; Photo by Jun Tsuboike/NPR For more Tiny Desk Concerts, subscribe to our podcast.

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Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats: NPR Music Tiny Desk Concerts

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Duration: 15:56
Updated: 17 Nov 2015
views: 6253

November 17, 2015 by BOB BOILEN Nathaniel Rateliff and his band The Night Sweats are on fire, with concerts that get feet moving and bodies swaying, fueled by rhythm and booze. It wasn't always this way: In the past, Rateliff would be more easily described as a folk artist. When I saw him recently at a sold-out Sunday-night show in D.C., he expressed intense gratitude for the new audience that's found him. Much of that new crowd has embraced the big-band R&B; of his new album, Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats, which was produced by Richard Swift and released on the legendary Stax Records. The record and its songs embrace not only Southern soul, but also the rockier side of soul made famous by Irish singer Van Morrison. Here at the Tiny Desk, Rateliff's body-shaking tunes take on a slightly more laid-back sound, served with a warm heart and suitable for a cold beer. Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats is available now. iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/nathaniel-rateliff-night-sweats/id1004825165 Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Nathaniel-Rateliff-The-Night-Sweats/dp/B00ZF3SIDI Set List "I Need Never Get Old" "Look It Here" "I've Been Failing You" "Mellow Out" Credits Producers: Bob Boilen, Morgan Walker; Audio Engineer: Josh Rogosin; Videographers: Morgan Walker, Nick Michael, Julia Reihs; Production Assistant: Kate Drozynski; Photo by Julia Reihs/NPR For more Tiny Desk Concerts, subscribe to our podcast: http://www.npr.org/podcasts/510292/tiny-desk-concerts-video

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Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah: NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert

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Duration: 33:50
Updated: 20 Oct 2015
views: 1094

October 09, 2015 by PATRICK JARENWATTANANON Artists don't usually tell long, rambling stories at the Tiny Desk, and if they do, those stories don't usually make the final cut. But this one felt different. It was about the time Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah, a young black man, says he was stopped by New Orleans police late at night for no reason other than to harass and intimidate him. And how his pride almost made him do something ill-advised about it. And how he finally channeled that pent-up frustration into a piece of music whose long-form title is "Ku Klux Police Department." "K.K.P.D." was the emotional peak of the septet's performance, though it wasn't a new tune. That's notable, because Scott stopped by the Tiny Desk on the very day his new album came out. It was played by something of a new band, though: Flutist Elena Pinderhughes, saxophonist Braxton Cook and guitarist Dominic Minix are new, younger additions to the group. It had new textures, too: Drummer Corey Fonville (another new member) used a djembe as a bass drum, and also brought a MIDI pad so he could emulate the sound of a drum machine. The effect was something like an evocation of African roots, juxtaposed with a trap beat. The first two numbers were, in fact, from Scott's new album Stretch Music. That's his name for the particular type of jazz fusion he's up to: something more seamless than a simple collision of genre signifiers; something whose DNA is already hybridized and freely admits sonic elements which potentially "stretch" jazz's purported boundaries. (You may note that he showed up in a Joy Division sleeveless T-shirt and gold chain.) It's sleek and clearly modern, awash in guitar riffs, but also bold and emotionally naked. Scott is particularly good at getting you to feel the energy he sends pulsing through his horn, and he never shies away from going all-in on a solo. The least we could offer was to let him explain himself in doing so. Stretch Music is available now. iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/stretch-music-introducing/id1024394279 Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01399S7GC?keywords=christian%20scott%20stretch%20music&qid;=1444351505&ref;_=sr_1_1&sr;=8-1 Set List "TWIN" "West Of The West" "K.K.P.D." Personnel Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah, trumpet; Elena Pinderhughes, flute; Braxton Cook, alto saxophone; Lawrence Fields, piano; Dominic Minix, guitar; Kris Funn, bass; Corey Fonville, percussion Credits Producers: Patrick Jarenwattananon, Morgan Walker; Audio Engineer: Josh Rogosin; Videographer: Morgan Walker, Nick Michael, Cameron Robert; Production Assistant: Julia Reihs; photo by Julia Reihs For more Tiny Desk Concerts, subscribe to our podcast: http://www.npr.org/podcasts/510292/tiny-desk-concerts-video

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Death Cab For Cutie: NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert

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Duration: 18:16
Updated: 07 Apr 2015
views: 7328

Death Cab For Cutie came as a trio: Ben Gibbard sang, Nick Harmer played bass, and we wheeled in our piano for Zac Rae. This intimate set included two new songs — including "Black Sun," the first single from their new album Kintsugi. The album title refers to the Japanese art of reassembling broken pottery and making the breakage part of the newly formed pot. Death Cab For Cutie, a groundbreaking band formed in 1997, has gone through its own rebuilding of sorts. Chris Walla, a founding member of the band, has left, after contributing music to Kintsugi, but that's his farewell offering. Death Cab For Cutie is still strongly defined by Gibbard's words, and that couldn't be more evident in this beautifully stark performance, which also includes "No Room In Frame" from Kintsugi, as well as two stripped-down favorites from the past. One, "Your Heart Is An Empty Room," is from Plans, while a beautiful love song from Transatlanticism, "Passenger Seat," moistened more than a few eyes in the crowd. Set List "Black Sun" 0:07 "No Room In Frame" 5:13 "Your Heart Is An Empty Room" 9:23 "Passenger Seat" 14:00 Credits Producers: Bob Boilen, Maggie Starbard; Audio Engineer: Kevin Wait; Videographers: Maggie Starbard, Carlos Waters; Assistant Producer: Emily Jan; photo by Emily Jan/NPR

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Chris Stapleton: NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert

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Duration: 14:58
Updated: 14 Sep 2015
views: 584

September 14, 2015 by JACOB GANZ As a songwriter in Nashville, Chris Stapleton has written hits for Kenny Chesney, George Strait and Darius Rucker. As a singer, he once led the bluegrass band The SteelDrivers, and more recently stepped into the solo spotlight with Traveller, his debut album. It's the kind of country record that gets better the more you wear it in: When NPR Music named it one of our favorite albums of the first half of 2015, critic Ann Powers compared it to a "soft denim jacket ... pulled out time after time, lending comfort, suiting every occasion, with treasure stuffed in every pocket." It's easy to understand why other singers took to his songs — Stapleton writes lyrics that sound classic but never dated — but his softly creaking voice gives them the home they deserve. And even though those songs stand plenty well on their own, it's nice to have a little support. When Stapleton stepped behind the Tiny Desk to play selections from Traveller, he was joined by his wife Morgane on harmony vocals. Between patient, detailed songs of devotion to love, Los Angeles and liquor, they paused for banter about the summer heat in D.C. and the large number of guitars Chris owns ("Not supposed to tell that part," he said to Morgane). Watch him hide behind a large hat, a beard and a battered vintage guitar; watch her smile at him during "More Of You" with a combination of admiration and affection. Like the songs themselves, their performance is full of private moments worth sharing widely. Traveller is available now. (iTunes) (Amazon) Set List "More Of You" "When The Stars Come Out" "Whiskey And You" Credits Producers: Jacob Ganz, Morgan Walker; Audio Engineer: Josh Rogosin; Videographers: Morgan Walker, Lani Milton; Assistant Producer: Mina Tavakoli; photo by Lani Milton/NPR For more Tiny Desk Concerts subscribe to our podcast. http://www.npr.org/podcasts/510292/tiny-desk-concerts-video

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The Wild Reeds: NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert

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Duration: 15:00
Updated: 20 Nov 2015
views: 4714

November 20, 2015 by BOB BOILEN Great singers aren't easy to come by, so finding three in one band is something special. The Wild Reeds' music shines when Sharon Silva, Kinsey Lee and Mackenzie Howe harmonize, but each also takes a leading role — and that's the power of the L.A. band, whose songs are clear and memorable, potent and sometimes delicate. The Wild Reeds' 2014 debut album Blind And Brave only hints at the talent on display here. Here, the group opens with my favorite song from the record, "Where I'm Going," and then offers a taste of 2016 with two new ones. Next year ought to be a big year for The Wild Reeds, and this Tiny Desk Concert will show you what I mean. Blind And Brave is available now. iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/blind-and-brave/id907588390 Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Blind-Brave-The-Wild-Reeds/dp/B00MKFKGES Set List "Where I'm Going" "Everything Looks Better In Hindsight" "The World We Built" Credits Producers: Bob Boilen, Morgan Walker; Audio Engineer: Josh Rogosin; Videographers: Morgan Walker, Nick Michael, Julia Reihs; Production Assistant: Kate Drozynski; Photo by Julia Reihs/NPR For more Tiny Desk Concerts, subscribe to our podcast: http://www.npr.org/podcasts/510292/tiny-desk-concerts-video

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Beirut Full Concert | NPR MUSIC FRONT ROW

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Duration: 75:57
Updated: 29 Sep 2015
views: 43921

How does a band return from a recording hiatus that could have permanently displaced it from the audience's eye? If you are Zach Condon and Beirut, you just go about your business and pick up where you left off three years earlier. The group's First Listen Live show at Brooklyn's intimate Bell House on a rainy September night, a concert debuting many of the songs from the brand new No No No, its first album since 2011, showed that Beirut works through its obstacles. Maybe it helps when the initial idea behind a band is ahead of the curve to begin with, no? When Condon's Beirut first came to prominence in 2006, it emerged from Santa Fe with a fully conceived, pan-global folk sound unlike any indie sensibilities popular on the day. Zach's trumpet and flugelhorn playing was informed by local Mexican mariachi horns, his engagement with the Roma brass bands of the Balkans, and modal jazz changes via a percolating bossa nova; he favored timeless instruments (ukuleles, accordions) and images, to the rush of the modern; and the songs his quavering tenor delivered, also traveled the old continents. Live, the group grew into a formidable sextet, heavy on keyboards, horns and harmony, a world onto themselves. At the Bell House, Beirut ran down its entire career before a sold-out audience, and the songs from No No No, the band's fourth studio, fit snuggly alongside the older material, even as it heralded directions new and familiar. "Perth," for instance, featured a touch of the Memphis soul energy, with Ben Lanz's trombone adding a brassy bump; "Fener," a song about a neighborhood in Istanbul, is built around the motorik beat interplay between Aaron Arntz's keyboards and Nick Petree's drums, before dropping down into a great g-funk slink, guided by Condon's Moog. So seemingly apart from Beirut's musical environment, yet, here they were, a natural part of it, making the audience sway endlessly. The hiatus, it seems, simply made full hearts grow fonder. Set List: No No No - 1:31 Scenic World - 4:54 Elephant Gun - 7:27 As Needed - 12:08 Perth - 15:46 Santa Fe - 20:03 Postcards From Italy - 25:17 August Holland - 29:42 The Rip Tide - 33:49 The Shrew - 38:10 Fener - 42:23 Serbian Cocek - 46:08 At Once - 49:44 After The Curtain - 52:44 So Allowed - 56:27 Pacheco - 1:01:10 Gulag Orkestar - 1:04:16 In The Mausoleum - 1:07:41 Flying Club Cup - 1:11:20 Director: Mito Habe-Evans; Producer: Saidah Blount; Videographers: Mito Habe-Evans, Lani Milton, Christopher Farber, A.J. Wilhelm; Audio Engineers: Josh Rogosin; Special Thanks: The Bell House; Executive Producer: Anya Grundmann

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Aurora: NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert

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Duration: 13:21
Updated: 09 Nov 2015
views: 3852

The first time I saw Aurora sing, it appeared so new to her that each note, and each hand gesture accompanying each note, seemed like a discovery and an adventure for the singer. She was 18 when I first saw her in New York City, and now the Norwegian singer is 19; take a look at this Tiny Desk Concert, and her sense of innocence and discovery still rings as true as ever. Aurora has just one EP and some singles out so far, and ever since seeing her at CMJ in 2014, I've been eager for her debut album. Early next year, we should finally have it — as well as more chances to see Aurora live, as she plans on touring the U.S. in the spring. Running With The Wolves is available now. iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/running-with-the-wolves-ep/id987008667 Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Running-With-Wolves-Ep-AURORA/dp/B00WTJK47Y Set List "Runaway" "Murder Song (5, 4, 3, 2, 1)" "Running With The Wolves" Credits Producers: Bob Boilen, Morgan Walker; Audio Engineer: Brian Jarboe; Videographers: Morgan Walker, Morgan McCloy; Production Assistant: Lani Milton; Photo by Hadas/NPR For more Tiny Desks, subscribe to our podcast: http://www.npr.org/podcasts/510292/tiny-desk-concerts-video

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T-Pain: Officially Yours | NPR MUSIC FRONT ROW

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Duration: 5:05
Updated: 21 Nov 2015
views: 5413

To mark the one-year anniversary of the most popular Tiny Desk Concert ever and the 10th anniversary of his debut album, Rappa Ternt Sanga, we hosted T-Pain at our Washington, D.C. headquarters. The inimitable Floridian performed a short set of classics, both his own and others', and brand new, never before heard song from his forthcoming album, Stoicville: The Phoenix. Follow @NPRandB and @NPRHipHop. Director: Mito Habe-Evans; Producer: Frannie Kelly; Videographers: Colin Marshall, Julia Reihs, Cameron Robert, Morgan Walker; Audio Engineers: Andy Huether, Josh Rogosin, Neil Tevault; Special Thanks: Chris Berry, Saidah Blount, Bobby Carter, Kate Drozynski, Kiana Fitzgerald, Savoy Jefferson, Cedric Shine, Justin Winn; Executive Producer: Anya Grundmann

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Hozier: NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert

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Duration: 15:11
Updated: 28 May 2014
views: 874086

Andrew Hozier-Byrne's voice is so rich, so vital and so soulful, I'm certain I'll follow his music for a long time to come. The 24-year-old Irishman, who performs under the name Hozier, opens this set with the brilliant and instantly grabby song "Take Me to Church," about passion, sex and religion. Hozier's music is based in the blues, and you'll hear the singer-guitarist's love for Muddy Waters and John Lee Hooker during the second song he performs here. His band — piano, guitar, percussion — steps aside for the swampy "To Be Alone," in which the blues provide a starting place for his high, yearning vocals and deep questioning. Hozier has just two EPs out, and both have me yearning to hear more. --BOB BOILEN Set List "Take Me To Church" "To Be Alone" "Cherry Wine" Credits Producers: Bob Boilen, Denise DeBelius; Audio Engineer: Kevin Wait; Videographers: Denise DeBelius, Olivia Merrion; Production Assistant: Alex Schelldorf; photo by Alex Schelldorf/NPR

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Shakey Graves: NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert

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Duration: 18:07
Updated: 15 Dec 2015
views: 2043

December 15, 2015 by BOB BOILEN When Alejandro Rose-Garcia, aka Shakey Graves, breaks out his guitar and suitcase kick drum/hi-hat, a palpable rush of swooning adrenaline hits the room. I felt that at the Americana Festival in Nashville, at the Newport Folk Festival and here at the Tiny Desk. The Texas singer's charisma is matched by his warm, sometimes frenetic music — he attempted a stage dive at the Tiny Desk — which mixes country, blues and rock 'n' roll. If you don't know Shakey Graves' music, the best way to fall in love with him is in a live setting like this one. And the War Came is available now. iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/and-the-war-came/id950359481 Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00M2098UO?ie=UTF8&*Version*=1&*entries*=0 Set List "To Cure What Ails" "The Perfect Parts" "Only Son" Credits Producers: Bob Boilen, Morgan Walker; Audio Engineer: Josh Rogosin; Videographers: Morgan Walker, Julia Reihs; Production Assistant: Kate Drozynski; Photo by Julia Reihs/NPR For more Tiny Desk Concerts, subscribe to our podcast. http://www.npr.org/podcasts/510292/tiny-desk-concerts-video

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Andra Day: NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert

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Duration: 13:19
Updated: 13 Oct 2015
views: 5472

My rule when booking Tiny Desk Concerts is to see artists live before they come to the office. I've heard many a great record only to be disappointed by a live show. But when I heard Andra Day sing "Forever Mine" from her album Cheers To The Fall, I decided to break my rule, sight unseen. When Day started warming up for this set, I could see that she was born to perform. She's able to channel the likes of Nina Simone and Billie Holiday in songs that feel candid and vulnerable, but not understated. Day studied singing in a performing-arts high school in San Diego. A live performance found its way to Stevie Wonder after a chance meeting with his wife. Day was then introduced to songwriter and producer Adrian Gurvitz and then Raphael Saadiq to help her make Cheers To The Fall. This is an unforgettable performance, and she's got a talented backing band to boot. Cheers To The Fall is available now. iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/cheers-to-the-fall/id996787628 Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Cheers-The-Fall-Andra-Day/dp/B00Z97XIZ8 Set List "Forever Mine" 00:00 "Rise Up" 03:42 "Gold" 08:00 Credits Producers: Bob Boilen, Morgan Walker; Audio Engineer: Josh Rogosin; Videographers: Morgan Walker, Julia Reihs; Production Assistant: Kate Drozynski; photo by Jun Tsuboike/NPR For more Tiny Desk Concerts, subscribe to our podcast: http://www.npr.org/podcasts/510292/tiny-desk-concerts-video

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Daughter: NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert

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Duration: 13:41
Updated: 05 Sep 2014
views: 479053
author: NPR Music

Daughter first popped up on our radar when we heard the London band's song "Landfill" while preparing for SXSW early last year: Achingly pretty and melanchol...

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Sylvan Esso: NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert

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Duration: 17:16
Updated: 30 Mar 2015
views: 4785

It's hard to believe that it hasn't quite been a year since the first Sylvan Esso album came out. The odd yet perfect marriage of Nick Sanborn's electronics with Amelia Meath's voice feels like a familiar friend by now. And yet seeing these songs performed softly — and captured in the light of day — made them feel fresh and lovable in new ways. To keep things fresh and interesting, Sanborn brought a bunch of new gear to the Tiny Desk; it seemed a bit bewildering to him for a bit, but also inspiring. I think that's what makes this combination work so well: Meath and Sanborn inspire one another. You can see it in their eyes and in their smiles, and it comes out in their playing and dancing. It's enchanting music, performed wonderfully.-- BOB BOILEN Set List "Coffee" "H.S.K.T." "Come Down" Credits Producers: Bob Boilen, Maggie Starbard; Audio Engineer: Kevin Wait; Videographers: Colin Marshall, Maggie Starbard; Assistant Producer: Morgan McCloy; photo by Morgan McCloy/NPR

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Paolo Angeli: NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert

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Duration: 28:41
Updated: 20 Oct 2015
views: 2305

October 19, 2015 by ANASTASIA TSIOULCAS Paolo Angeli has a whole toy shop aboard his guitar: He's got hammers, pedals, propellers, springs, drone strings and even a couple of cell-phone ringers at his disposal. The base of it all is a six-stringed instrument from his native island of Sardinia, and the seed of Angeli's sonic creations is traditional Sardinian music. But in the same way that he's turned his guitar into something new, Angeli twists and turns that tradition into musical magic, in creations that skim over jazz, experimental, improvisational, classical and punk — embracing all, yet not quite belonging to any. All those toys let him create a palette of super-saturated colors and unbelievably varied textures. Angeli, who's based in Barcelona, describes his set-up as "a one-man band for the new millennium." The setup may be futuristic, but the music he creates is deeply human — warm and full of humor and wit, just like Angeli himself. S'u is available now. iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/su/id963217937 Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Su-Angeli-Paolo/dp/B00UW4G9OU Set List "Mascaratu" "Corsicana" "Brida" Credits Producers: Anastasia Tsioulcas, Morgan Walker; Audio Engineer: Josh Rogosin; Videographers: Morgan Walker, Julia Reihs; Production Assistant: Kate Drozynski For more Tiny Desk Concerts, subscribe to our podcast: http://www.npr.org/podcasts/510292/tiny-desk-concerts-video

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John Legend: NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert

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Duration: 16:02
Updated: 18 Nov 2013
views: 398081

At 34, John Legend has sold millions of records, won nine Grammys, collaborated with many of the biggest stars in music (Jay-Z, Kanye West, Alicia Keys, The Roots, et al), and achieved the kind of statesmanlike musical-ambassador status usually afforded to artists twice his age. He is, in short, the sort of star who doesn't usually perform behind desks in offices. But once we'd wedged a piano back there, Legend sounded perfectly at home. His rich, soulful voice never suffered for a lack of processing and production as he performed three songs for NPR Music and a few hundred of our rapt coworkers, loved ones and hangers-on. Though he recently released a fine new album titled Love in the Future, from which "Made to Love" and "All of Me" were drawn for this set, Legend took special care to provide the backstory for "Move," which he'd recorded for the soundtrack to 12 Years a Slave. Legend executive-produced that soundtrack himself — don't be surprised if you wind up hearing him perform "Move" again on Oscar night — and recorded the album version with U.K. musician Fink. Here, though, it's stripped down considerably, with just Legend's piano and the acoustic guitar of guest Bobby Anderson providing accompaniment. Legend doesn't play settings this intimate very often, and it's not as if he has anything to prove at this point in his career. But, just in case he did, he retains a busker's lung capacity, the charisma of a born star and the easygoing grace of a performer fit for any stage — even a tiny one. --STEPHEN THOMPSON Set List "Made To Love" "Move" "All Of Me" Credits Producers: Bob Boilen, Denise DeBelius; Audio Engineer: Kevin Wait; Videographers: Denise DeBelius, Becky Harlan, Abbey Oldham, Meredith Rizzo

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In Conversation with Pharrell Williams | NPR MUSIC

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Duration: 99:33
Updated: 29 Oct 2015
views: 206

Pharrell Williams — performer, songwriter, producer, designer and entrepreneur — sat down for a rare, in-depth, career retrospective discussion with Jason King, professor at the Clive Davis Institute of Recorded Music and host of NPR Music's R&B; channel "I"ll Take You There." The conversation took place on Monday, Oct. 26 at New York City's Town Hall. King moderated a freewheeling and in-depth discussion on Pharrell's legacy of creativity, blending music, fashion, design and his singular style, from his beginnings as a teenage prodigy and multi-instrumentalist in Virginia Beach in the early '90s through the hits that earned him Billboard's Producer of the Decade in 2010 to his current status as multi-media superstar. CREDITS Host: Jason King; Director: Mito Habe-Evans; Producer: Saidah Blount; Videographers: Christopher Parks, Cameron Robert, A.J. Wilhelm; Audio Engineer: Josh Rogosin; Special Thanks: The Town Hall, Clive Davis Institute of Recorded Music at NYU Tisch School of the Arts; Executive Producer: Anya Grundmann

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