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Leyla McCalla: Tiny Desk Concert Hotney 4 Streams • 4 years ago

Ann Powers | October 20, 2022
“How much does a memory weigh?” Leyla McCalla sings halfway through her Tiny Desk performance in a voice that feels like it’s floating in water – swimming, drowning, escaping, returning home – as it intertwines with the seaweed lines of Nahum Zdybel’s guitar. That question, from her ballad “Memory Song,” is central to the music she and her band offer in this sparkling, thoughtful set. This music originated within McCalla's theater piece about independent station Radio Haiti, Breaking the Thermometer To Hide the Fever, which she transformed into one of 2022’s most compelling albums. From the driving, danceable call to revolution “Dodinin” to “Nan Fon Bwa,” written by renowned guitarist Frantz Casseus and now a showcase for McCalla’s funky cello work, she and her band — all players deeply immersed in Haiti’s rhythms and songlines — enact a historical journey that honors a nation born in revolution and still fighting, despite unfathomable hardship, today.

McCalla’s parents immigrated to New York as kids, during François Duvalier’s murderous regime. “I’ve been curious about that period in their lives and Haitian history for a long time,” she says, introducing “Fort Dimanche,” which samples an interview conducted by Radio Haiti’s cofounder Michèle Montas about life within the country’s most notoriously brutal prison. The song begins quietly, led by McCalla’s circular banjo lines, then builds a dream of freedom through the rhythms of Markus Schwartz's congas and Pete Olyinciw’s bowed and plucked upright bass. Memory’s shape is latticework, delicate and non-linear, and McCalla’s songs honor its partial revelations with the grace of deep attention.

SET LIST
Dodinin
Memory Song
Fort Dimanche
Nan Fon Bwa

MUSICIANS
Leyla McCalla - vocals, cello, banjo, electric guitar
Pete Olynciw - upright bass
Shawn Myers - drums
Nahum Zdybel - electric guitar
Markus Schwartz - Congas

TINY DESK TEAM
Producer: Bob Boilen
Director/Editor: Joshua Bryant
Audio Engineer: Josh Rogosin
Series Producer: Bobby Carter
Videographers: Kara Frame, Joshua Bryant, Maia Stern
Audio Assistant: Natasha Branch
Production Assistant: Jill Britton
Tiny Desk Team: Suraya Mohamed, Marissa Lorusso, Hazel Cills, Ashley Pointer
VP, Visuals and Music: Keith Jenkins
Senior VP, Programming: Anya Grundmann

#TinyDesk #NPRMusic #LeylaMcCalla

SIX The Musical: Tiny Desk Concert Hotney 4 Streams • 4 years ago

Josh Rogosin | Sept. 1, 2022
As soon as the Queens saw the Tiny Desk, their excitement was palpable. After the initial flurry of selfies were snapped, the actors and band completely owned the room — enrapturing the audience of NPR staffers assembled.

SIX The Musical imagines the six wives of Henry VIII reuniting on stage as real-life popstars. Their "queenspirations" include Beyoncé (for Catherine of Aragon, as played by Khaila Wilcoxon), Miley Cyrus (Anne Boleyn played by Storm Lever), Adele (Jane Seymour played by Jasmine Forsberg), Lizzo (Anna of Cleves played by Olivia Donalson), Britney Spears (Katherine Howard played by Didi Romero) and Celine Dion (Catherine Parr played by Gabriela Carrillo).

SIX premiered in 2017 at the famed Edinburgh Fringe Festival and was written by Toby Marlow and Lucy Moss while students at the University of Cambridge. Since then, the show has become a global sensation — with six productions running concurrently. It won this year's Tony Awards for best original score and best costume design of a musical.

Opening night on Broadway was set for March 12, 2020. Just 90 minutes before curtain, New York theaters were ordered to close due to the pandemic. As the resident theater geek on the team, I pitched SIX for a Tiny Desk (home) concert once the show finally opened in the fall of 2021. Then it was announced that the musical would be at The National Theatre just a few miles from NPR HQ. Luckily, we were all finally back at Bob's diminutive desk recording bands, ready to welcome them. The rest, as they say, is herstory.

SET LIST
"Ex-Wives (Reprise)"
"Heart of Stone"
"Get Down"
"Six"

MUSICIANS
Khaila Wilcoxon: vocals, as Catherine of Aragon
Storm Lever: vocals, as Anne Boleyn
Jasmine Forsberg: vocals, as Jane Seymour
Olivia Donalson: vocals, as Anna of Cleves
Didi Romero: vocals, as Katherine Howard
Gabriela Carrillo: vocals, as Catherine Parr
Jo Ann Daugherty: conductor, keyboard
Valerie Maze: melodica, percussion
Janetta Goines: bass
Rose Laguaña: electric, acoustic guitar
Paige Durr: drums

TINY DESK TEAM
Producer/Audio Engineer: Josh Rogosin
Director: Kara Frame
Series Creator: Bob Boilen
Series Producer: Bobby Carter
Editor: Michael Zamora
Videographers: Kara Frame, Michael Zamora, Pierre Kattar, Joshua Bryant
Production Assistants: Jill Britton, Alanté Serene, Joby Tanseco
Tiny Desk Team: Suraya Mohamed, Marissa Lorusso, Hazel Cills, Ashley Pointer, Maia Stern
VP, Visuals and Music: Keith Jenkins
Senior VP, Programming: Anya Grundmann

Sheku Kanneh-Mason: Tiny Desk Concert Hotney 4 Streams • 4 years ago

Tom Huizenga | November 15, 2022One measure of an artist’s popularity is how long it takes to book them for a Tiny Desk concert. In the case of British cellist Sheku Kanneh-Mason, it took about three years. Granted, the pandemic got in the way, but ever since his 2018 breakthrough performance at the wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, Duchess of Sussex, he’s been -- needless to say -- in demand. Nearly 2 billion people worldwide saw his royal performance on television. At the Tiny Desk, Kanneh-Mason played for only a handful of NPR staffers, and the performance felt like a direct communication from his luminous cello (built in 1700) to our heartstrings. It was especially true in Kanneh-Mason’s own arrangement of “Myfanwy,” the mournful Welsh folk song the cellist first heard from his grandmother. Accompanying himself with left hand pizzicato, Kanneh-Mason makes his instrument sing like a sad old Welshman with a tear in his eye. Aside from his expressive playing, Kanneh-Mason excels at arranging pop songs for his instrument. “No Woman, No Cry,” one of his calling cards, explores the tender and bittersweet side of the Bob Marley classic. Still only 23, Kanneh-Mason’s stature commands the attention of composers. Last year, the fine young Brit Edmund Finnis wrote a set of solo preludes for Kanneh-Mason. The music reveals the cello’s many voices, from growling urgency to supple soliloquy to full-throated cry. While we can’t guarantee 2 billion views on our platforms, those who do watch this Tiny Desk performance will witness a rising young star who, whether he knows it or not, represents nothing less than the future of classical music.SET LISTBob Marley: “No Woman, No Cry” (arr. Sheku Kanneh-Mason)Edmund Finnis: Preludes I-III for solo celloJoseph Parry: “Myfanwy” (arr. Sheku Kanneh-Mason)MUSICIANSSheku Kanneh-Mason: celloTINY DESK TEAMProducer: Tom HuizengaDirector/Editor: Joshua BryantAudio Engineer: Andie HuetherAudio Mix: Josh RogosinCreative Director: Bob BoilenSeries Producer: Bobby CarterVideographers: Joshua Bryant, Sofia SeidelAudio Assistant: Hannah Copeland Production Assistant: Jill BrittonTiny Desk Team: Suraya Mohamed, Marissa Lorusso, Hazel Cills, Kara Frame, Maia Stern, Ashley PointerVP, Visuals and Music: Keith JenkinsSenior VP, Programming: Anya Grundmann#tinydesk #nprmusic #shekukannehmason

Adekunle Gold: Tiny Desk (Home) Concert Hotney 4 Streams • 4 years ago

This year, NPR Music is celebrating Black Music Month with an array of brand new Tiny Desk concerts — both from home and from behind our beloved Desk. Together, these artists represent the past, present and future of Black music. This month of carefully curated shows is a celebration of Black artists expressing themselves in ways we've never seen before, and of the Tiny Desk’s unique way of showcasing that talent.

Ashley Pointer | June 2, 2022
Attention passengers: Please make sure your seat belts are fastened and tray tables are stored away as Adekunle Gold is ready for takeoff. The shape of the Nigerian singer-songwriter's Tiny Desk (home) concert mimics a flight pattern sonically and energetically, starting off laid back and ascending to greater heights that'll make you dance and move your feet.

AG's career first picked up steam after the release of his debut single "Sade," a highlife cover of One Direction's "Story of My Life," in 2014; then, he released his debut album Gold in 2016. Three albums later, the Yoruba sensation's sound has evolved from highlife to Afropop.

AG filmed his (home) concert with his band in Los Angeles, inside a retro, faux airport terminal – home of AG Baby Airlines. Opening with "Sinner," a modern take on the Biblical story of King David and Bathsheba, the band's arrangement translates seamlessly live, with AG's smooth vocals complimented by violin and driven by steady, rhythmic drums.

Closing his set with the uptempo and jaunty "Okay," a reliable banger from his record Afro Pop, Vol. 1, AG explains: "It's such an energy giver — the people turn up, and we are about to turn up now." Embarking on his first North American Tour Catch Me If You Can, which has its first stop today in Boston — as noted on the AG Baby Airlines signage — "turn up" is precisely the correct term as AG Baby is letting you know that he may be bringing his signature soulful Afropop to a city near you.

SET LIST
"Sinner"
"Something Different"
"One Woman"
"Okay"

MUSICIANS
Adekunle Gold: vocals
Omar Perrin: keys/MD
Cam Griffin: guitar
Darius Woodley: drums
Clark Sims: bass
Lulu V: violin

CREDITS
Director: Robin Burke
Producer: Kristene Lew, Kat Boyd
Creative Director: Grace Hsiu
Producer: 1983 Creative
Director of Photography: Mikey Van Beuren
Camera Operators: Danny Corey, Kyle Messina
1st AC: Dima Shorin, Garrett Hoffmann
2nd AC: Natasha Abdul
Editors: Wolf De Burgo, Cole Benton
Gaffer: Adam Schaffer
Electric: Wesley Aharoni
Key Grip: Ryan Silver
Audio Engineer: Liz Robson
Assistant Engineer: Anthony Culpepper
Mix Engineer: Bakare Michael
Mix and Master Engineer: Mike Tucci
Truck PA: Herbie Finn Bailey De Vos
Set PA: Patrick Amirbehboody
Management: Elizabeth Sobowale, Ola Fowosere
Extra: Tyler Lazalere, Zoë Montano, Dionte Goodlett

TINY DESK TEAM
Producer: Bobby Carter
Video Producer: Michael Zamora
Audio Mastering: Andie Huether
Animation: Kaz Fantone
Tiny Production Team: Bob Boilen, Josh Rogosin, Joshua Bryant, Maia Stern, Ashley Pointer
VP, Visuals and Music: Keith Jenkins
Senior VP, Programming: Anya Grundmann

#tinydesk #tinydeskconcert #adekunlegold

DJ Drama Talks Gangsta Grilllz, Tyler The Creator, Seddy Hendricks, Snoop Dogg EXCLUSIVE Hotney 4 Streams • 4 years ago

Tyree Cinque Simmons, professionally known as DJ Drama, is a DJ, record executive and music promoter. He is the co-founder (with Don Cannon) of Generation Now, an Atlantic Records imprint with artists including Lil Uzi Vert, Jack Harlow, and Skeme on its roster. He initially gained recognition as the official DJ for Atlanta rapper T.I. and as a prominent mixtape DJ with his series, Gangsta Grillz. Numerous artists have appeared on DJ Drama's Gangsta Grillz tapes, including Lil Wayne, Fabolous, Ludacris, Jeezy, Gucci Mane, and many others. He was a co-founder of the Atlanta-based DJ and artist collective known as the Aphilliates. Drama has released 5 studio albums, curating tracks with some of the industry's most lucrative talent.

In this interview Marco’s first question is how DJ Drama got his name. DJ Drama admits to the odd giving of his name. DJ Drama also talks about his top artists to work with. The audience applauds awkwardly and Marco asks for Drama’s phone number and leaves the set to test it. Upon Marco’s return the audience continues to awkwardly applaud. Marco asks Drama if he likes comedy and a comedian named Cheating Ass Myron comes on stage and does an awkward impromptu stand up. Drama is unfazed at the awkward moment and tries to dissect the moment but Marco encourages the audience in their awkward applause. Marco asks about Drama’s past and his acceleration and Drama expounds. Marco takes Drama through several hypothetical scenarios to which Drama responds. Drama and the producer have a discussion off camera and the producer does an impromptu freestyle that continues with Drama playing it very professional. Seddy Hendrinx makes an appearance with Drama and the two talk about their work experience. The audience continues their impromptu applauding as Marco continues with awkward stories and questions. DJ Drama plays an exclusive piece of his and Snoop Dogg’s next single.

Executive Producers for Breakbeat: Dave Mays & Brett Jeffries

Executive Producers: Marco Summers & Harvey Sutton

Director: Matt Ables IG @mattablespromotions

Filmed on location at 4U Recording, Atlanta

IG @Breakbeatmedia @FunnyMarco

Comment, like and subscribe on the Breakbeat Media YouTube page, subscribe on Apple, Spotify or wherever podcasts are available, and visit us at www.breakbeatmedia.com

Kirk Franklin: Tiny Desk (Home) Concert Hotney 4 Streams • 4 years ago

NPR Music's Tiny Desk series will celebrate Black History Month by featuring four weeks of Tiny Desk (home) concerts and playlists by Black artists spanning different genres and generations each week. The lineup includes both emerging and established artists who will be performing a Tiny Desk concert for the first time. This celebration highlights the beautiful cornucopia of Black music and our special way of presenting it. We hope you enjoy.

Bobby Carter | February 25, 2021
Kirk Franklin, set up with his band and choir in a corner of Uncle Jessie's Kitchen, makes a declaration. "I know you're at home right now, in your draws, listening to some Jesus music. It's ok. Jesus loves you in your draws!" The Arlington, Texas studio, named after a long time close friend, features a large photo of the iconic "I AM A MAN" protest signs from the 1968 Memphis Sanitation Strike on the wall. The jubilant energy that Franklin and company emit, juxtaposed with a visual reminder of the strife that Black people have endured is illustrative of the importance of gospel music in the Black community.

For nearly 30 years, Franklin has been widely regarded for revolutionizing gospel. He incorporated secular music, particularly hip-hop, while preserving the message and integrity of traditional gospel. Here, he and his powerhouse choir pace through a decades-long, sixteen Grammy award winning discography of faith, praise and encouragement while cracking plenty of jokes. I cannot recall a more moving Tiny Desk home performance.

All month long, we've presented artists that speak to the diversity and complexity of Black music--where we've been, where we are and where we're going. For the final show, we take it back to the spiritual roots and there's no one more fitting to cap things off than Mr. Kirk Franklin.

SET LIST
Love Theory
Silver and Gold
Melodies From Heaven
I Smile

MUSICIANS
Kirk Franklin: vocals, keys
Melodie Pace: vocals
Darian Elliot: vocals
Michael Bethany: vocals
Eboni Ellerson: vocals
Deon Yancey: vocals
Tia Rudd: vocals
Shaun Martin: keyboard
Matthew Ramsey: bass
Terry Baker: drums, percussion

CREDITS
Video: Clear Scope Media
Audio: Michael Havens Reese Brooks

TINY DESK TEAM
Producers: Bobby Carter
Video Producer: Morgan Noelle Smith
Audio Mastering: Josh Rogosin
Art Director: CJ Riculan
Tiny Production Team: Bob Boilen, Kara Frame, Maia Stern
Executive Producer: Lauren Onkey
Senior VP, Programming: Anya Grundmann

#nprmusic #kirkfranklin #gospel #tinydesk

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