NPR Tiny Desk

Scarface And Mike Dean Deliver An Unforgettable Performance For NPR’s Tiny Desk Concert

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NPR’s Tiny Desk is one of the great joys amongst hardcore music fans of all genres. The mixture of live instrumentation and star power has drawn many to YouTube to see the creativity come to life. We have seen plenty of standout performances this year. Action Bronson, Tyler, The Creator, Anderson .Paak, Post Malone, and more have brought their unique flavor to the table. The latest artist to perform was legendary Houston MC, Scarface. He has been one of the most iconic names from that richly-talented city.

Scarface was joined by his right-hand man, Mike Dean, for a six-song performance. The setlist included “On My Block,” “Mary Jane,” “Smile,” “I Seen a Man Die,” “F*** Faces,” and “Mind Playing Tricks on Me.” According to Billboard, Tiny Desk producer DJ Cuzzin B could not help but gush about Scarface and Dean’s output. He called it the “best hip-hop Tiny Desk we’ve ever put out.”

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Scarface Brings Smooth Vibes To Tiny Desk

The instrumentation was absolutely stunning. With Mike, that comes to be expected at this point. His keyboard and synth work is some of the best in the business. Scarface was equally impressive with heartfelt storytelling and spitting on the mic. You can check out the full show above.

What are your initial thoughts on Scarface’s Tiny Desk Concert for NPR? Is this the best live performance of the year, why or why not? If it is not, what hip-hop or hip-hop adjacent artist did better? Has this been the best year for Tiny Desk shows, why or why not? Is he the best rapper from the South? We would like to hear what you have to say about all of this. With that in mind, be sure to leave all of your hottest takes in the comments section below. Additionally, always keep it locked in with HNHH for all of the latest breaking news around Scarface and Mike Dean. Finally, stay with us for everything else going on around the music world.

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Noname’s Tiny Desk Concert Was As Just Radical As It Was Groovy, Featuring Guest Appearances From Smino & Saba

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Today (November 10) was all about the 2024 Grammy Award nominations. However, nothing could stop Noname’s triumphant return to NPR’s Tiny Desk concert series. It’s been five years since her striking first appearance. With the Sundial Tour coming to a close soon, her cameo served as a treat to longtime supporters who couldn’t snag tickets to show near their city. Noname’s latest Tiny Desk concert performance was just as radical as it was groovy, featuring guest appearances by Smino and Saba for a brief Ghetto Sage reunion.

With musicians Greg Paul (drummer), Brooke Skye (bassist), Cisco Swank (keyboardist and supporting vocalist), and David Otis (saxophonist), Noname tackled her poignant album’s standout tracks, including “Namesake” and “Hold Me Down.” Background vocalists Kamilah and Claudia Abena provided the much-needed layering to help amplify its track’s messaging.

Ayoni also made a surprise appearance during Noname’s set so that they could perform their track “Boom Boom.” Ghetto Sage reunion revealed an unreleased track titled “Kush And Love Songs.” Before she closed with “Balloons,” in which Jay Electronic is featured, Noname took a trip down memory lane. Noname couldn’t leave out her older records. Room 25′s “Don’t Forget About Me” made the final setlist as the sole older track.

Sundial is out now via Noname. Find more information here.

Watch Noname’s latest Tiny Desk concert above.

Chlöe Reminded Us Of Her Unstoppable Star Power During Her Debut Solo Tiny Desk Concert

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Chloe Bailey is killing it in her solo era. This year, she released her debut album In Pieces and embarked on a solo tour. She and her sister, Halle, also released a line of activewear, and they teased that they will be hitting the studio to work on their third studio album as Chloe X Halle.

Today (September 5), Tiny Desk has dropped a special performance featuring Chloe Bailey, who performs solo as Chlöe.

During her Tiny Desk debut, Chlöe performed with an acoustic band, delivering some of her solo cuts.

She opened with “Surprise,” her sexy standalone single from 2022. She made a slight nod to Janet Jackson shortly after, saying “My name is Chlöe, Miss Bailey if you nasty,” making a smooth transition into the In Pieces fan favorite, “Body Do.”

Continuing with her momentum, she then performed “I Don’t Mind.” She slowed it down a bit with the performances on “In Pieces,” the title track from her solo debut album, which was co-written with Mikky Ekko.

While both of the Bailey sisters can guarantee us solid albums, their live performances always prove to be worth a watch. The work they put into their performances is unmatched by their peers, and promises longevity in the years to come.

You can see the performance above.

NPR Drops New Post Malone Tiny Desk Concert

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The NPR Tiny Desk has been home to many memorable performances over the years. Rappers like Anderson .Paak, JID, Chance The Rapper, Freddie Gibbs, and many more have made memorable appearances behind the titular desk in the NPR office. Fans love the series for its intimate format and the novel amusement of seeing such big stars with big personalities size their performances down into such a small space. Earlier today, NPR dropped a new Tiny Desk Concert with one of the biggest stars they’ve had to date.

The newest Tiny Desk episode features Post Malone. The rapper is fresh off the release of his hit new album Austin. The project debuted at number 2 on the Billboard 200 behind only Travis Scott’s UTOPIA. The album stuck for a second week in the top 10 on the chart, falling to number 7. The album also has three songs in the Hot 100 this week with “Chemical,” “Mourning,” and “Overdrive.” Additionally, Post features on the remix of Noah Kahan’s hit song “Dial Drunk,” which lands in the top 30. While Post doesn’t perform any of those songs in his Tiny Desk Concert, he does bring out some older hits.

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Post Malone And His Band At NPR’s Tiny Desk

Post Malone performed two of his biggest hits “Sunflower” and “Circles” as well as tracks like “I Fall Apart” and “Enough Is Enough.” He performed the acoustic set alongside a number of talented musicians adding sonic detail to his songs. The video already has over 150k views in just a few hours and the comments are full of fans loving what Post did with the format.

Post Malone turned heads a few weeks ago when he spent an astounding $2 million on a single Magic: The Gathering card. The sale marked the most expensive card ever sold from the franchise. It’s one of the many silly headlines that have emerged about Post throughout his career. Where would you rank Post Malone’s tiny desk concert among other rappers’ performances? Let us know in the comment section below.

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Babyface’s Tiny Desk Concert Was A Black-Ass Musical Family Reunion Showcasing His Impact Across The Past 50 Years

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Kenneth Edmonds, professionally known as Babyface, is one of the most sought out songwriters in modern times. So, it was only fitting that when the NPR Tiny Desk Concert series wanted to kick off Black Music Month, they called the musician. Babyface didn’t hold back, giving the series one Black-ass musical family reunion showcasing his impact across nearly fifty years.

Outside of his solo catalog, as a producer, he’s worked with some of the biggest names in music, including the late Whitney Houston, Mariah Carey, Beyoncé, Usher, and recently Ari Lennox. His setlist offered a tasting of those past collaborations. With backing support from fellow vocalist Tank, Chanté Moore, and Avery Wilson, Babyface opened up with his classic 1987 song “Two Occasions,” recorded as part of the group The Deele. The entertainer followed that up with his solo 1989 song, “Whip Appeal.”

Known as the woman whisper, when transitioning to Karyn White’s “Superwoman,” which he wrote and produced, Babyface shared how he’s been able to create music from the women’s perspective. “When I was a kid, I was always falling in love and getting my heart broken,” he said. “So when that would happen, I would write these really sad songs. Then I realized I probably was feeling the same hurt women were feeling.”

The remainder of the set included a cover of Madonna’s “Take A Bow,” Mary J. Blige’s “Not Gon’ Cry,” Tevin Campbell’s “Can We Talk,” “Change the World,” Fall Out Boy’s “Thnks fr th Mmrs,” Boyz II Men’s “I’ll Make Love To You” and “End Of The Road,” and closed with Whitney Houston’s “Exhale (Shoop Shoop)” off of the Waiting To Exhale movie soundtrack that Babyface produced.

The band consisted of Babyface on both the keys and, at times, the guitar, musical director Erskine Hawkins II as additional support on the keys, Antoine Porter on the guitar, Walt Barnes Jr. on bass, and Reggie Regg on drums.

Although the series features Black artists throughout the year, this subsegment is dedicated to celebrating their contributions to the art form on a much grander scale. The outlet said, “Together, these artists represent the past, present, and future of Black music.”

Watch the full performance above.

Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Trina Proved Herself To Be The ‘Baddest B*tch’ With Her NPR Tiny Desk Concert

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Trina did not come to mess around. The rapper — who recently collaborated with Latto and GloRilla — brought her songs to her NPR Tiny Desk Concert with a whole crew to give a gorgeous performance.

“This first song is dedicated to my mom,” she said, prefacing “Mama.” “Without her, there would be no me. And she’s the reason I’m standing here right now for you guys, so I want you to just enjoy.”

Harmonizing backing vocalists provided an enchanting backdrop for her flow about gratitude: “Mama, I wanna thank you / For sharing your blessings upon me / Taking time to understand the lady I wanna be,” she raps.

It only got better from there: “I wanna introduce you guys to the baddest b*tch,” she said before launching into the salacious “Da Baddest B*tch,” proving her range.

After those songs, she played “Single Again,” introducing it with a thoughtful speech: “Now, I wanna dedicate this song to all my single people, all my single ladies in the building. If you single, you came here today ain’t got no ring on your finger, just out here doing on your own, out here single, living your life to the fullest — I dedicate this song to you.”

“Here We Go” came afterwards, with the finale being “Nann N****.”

Watch her full performance above.

Ab-Soul Put On A Passionate Performance For His Tiny Desk Concert, Shared On His Birthday

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Last year, Ab-Soul released his new album Herbert featuring collaborations with artists like Big Sean, Russ, Joey Badass, and Jhené Aiko. He also teamed up with Zacari earlier this month for the track “Motions.” Now, he’s back with an NPR Tiny Desk.

His enthusiastic performance includes “Message In A Bottle,” “Bohemian Grove,” “It Be Like That,” “FOMF,” “Terrorist Threats,” “Fallacy,” “Do Better,” “The Book of Soul,” and “Gotta Rap.” His passionate flows are set to a mesmeric, eclectic backdrop of guitars, trumpets, and saxophones; there’s a sense of vibrant community amongst the cluster of talented musicians packed in the small space. To make it better, today is his birthday. What better way to celebrate?

A statement shared upon the announcement of the album Herbert explained the complexity of the meaning and making of it. “Herbert is a deliberately intimate portrait of the man behind Ab-Soul going back to his foundation,” the statement reads. “As noted by the name of the record, leaving the conspiracy theories, he’s known for behind while emphasizing his musicality. After suffering through a series of unspeakable tragedies, Stevens completed the album as a changed man with a new sense of purpose.”

Watch his Tiny Desk concert above.

Trueno Brings Latin Rap From Argentina To NPR’s Tiny Desk Series

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NPR is continuing to highlight rising Latin acts with the El Tiny spin-off of the Tiny Desk series. Argentine rapper Trueno is the latest artist to perform his hits in a stripped-down performance that was released yesterday (September 27).

NPR brought back the El Tiny spin-off of Tiny Desk for Latinx Heritage Month. Omar Apollo was the first artist to kick off the series on September 15 with his performance that helped his hit “Evergreen” break into the Billboard Hot 100 chart. Mexican singer Girl Ultra followed his lead and now Trueno is proudly representing Argentina on El Tiny.

This past year, Trueno has become a revelation in the Latin rap scene. Back in May, he made global headlines when the Gorillaz brought him out a special guest during the band’s Quilmes Rock set in Argentina. Trueno performed a freestyle rap in Spanish over the Gorillaz classic “Clint Eastwood.” Later that month, he released his breakthrough album Bien O Mal.

Trueno’s El Tiny performance was filmed at a conventillo, Argentina’s influential co-opt-like communities. He opened his set with “Dance Crip,” his ode to hip-hop’s roots that interpolated “Rapper’s Delight” by Sugarhill Gang. From his Bien O Mal album, Trueno also performed the title track and “Tierra Zanta.” The most powerful moment of his set was his performance of “Argentina,” his rap anthem for his country where he shouted out each one of its provinces.

Back in July, Trueno received support from J Balvin when they released the collaboration “Un Paso.” Trueno is nominated for Best Rap/Hip-Hop Song for “Dance Crip” at the 2022 Latin Grammy Awards.

Domi & JD Beck Literally Get Their Flowers On Their NPR Tiny Desk Concert

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One of our favorite emerging acts of the year, Domi & JD Beck have been on a tear since their debut album, Not Tight, came out last month. Jointly released via Anderson .Paak’s Apeshit Records along with Blue Note Records, the album features appearances from Anderson .Paak, Snoop Dogg, Herbie Hancock, Thundercat, and more. And now for the jazzy hip-hop instrumentalist pair’s latest trick, they’ve delivered a rousing NPR Tiny Desk Concert, where they quite literally, get their flowers.

Recorded in NPR’s Washington D.C. studio (as opposed to the “at home” Tiny Desk variety that’s become popular in the post-COVID era), Bob Boilen’s desk is adorned with an array of colorful flowers that are surrounding Domi on the keys and JD Beck on the drums. Beck drapes a towel over his snare to muffle the sound a bit and make it come across more intimately. Domi plays a double-stacked Nord keyboard setup as they course through “Not Tight,” “Smile,” “What Up,” and even flash their vocal chops on “U Don’t Have To Rob Me.”

And it’s not just their dexterous instrumentals that are once again on full display in this session. But the pair’s quirky disposition is too. “Thank you for coming to our Tiny Desk. It’s pretty sick to be here,” Domi says with a giggle. The rest is pure heat.

Watch Domi & JD Beck’s NPR Tiny Desk Concert above.

IDK Keeps Things ‘Simple’ In His At-Home Tiny Desk Concert Featuring Mike Dean

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One of the most fun elements of NPR’s Tiny Desk Concerts has always been the crowd interactions — something that has been missing ever since the series went to an at-home format as a result of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. However, as restrictions have eased up and vaccination levels increase, it looks like we’ll start to receive something of a hybrid approach whenever it’s possible. IDK’s new Tiny Desk Concert brings back the live audience feel as he invites neighbors and friends to his Los Angeles home to perform new songs from his recently released album Simple.

Opening with the soulful “Puerto Rico,” IDK opts to set the mood with the smooth, melodic gem from USEE4YOURSELF rather than one of his harder-hitting rap tracks, which allows him to present himself as a “sweet guy” and adds to the overall inviting mood. Meanwhile, Kaytranada’s jazzy, house-influenced production from Simple proves to translate beautifully to the stripped-down set, where some synthesized baby grand sets the groove as IDK’s friend thumps out the beat on a coffee table. Mike Dean also makes an appearance to contribute a ripping guitar solo to IDK’s latest single, “Breathe.”

Watch IDK’s Tiny Desk Concert above.

IDK is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.