Season 2018
91 episodes · Jan 3, 2018
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S11E1Open Mike Eagle
Jan 3, 2018The indie rap denizen behind one of 2017's most inventive albums came to the nation's capital to represent all the Brick Body Kids who Still Daydream.
S11E2Lo Moon
Jan 5, 2018The LA band's signature sound is intimate and demonstrative, haunting yet uplifting, an old-fashioned rock beat under glimmering guitar and keys. And at the Tiny Desk, it was at ease.
S11E3The Weather Station
Jan 8, 2018One of the joys of listening to The Weather station is the tension and release in the group's enchanting music. It's what made the band's most recent album one of Bob Boilen's favorite of 2017.
S11E4Julien Baker
Jan 10, 2018Julien Baker's Turn Out The Lights brought her much-deserved critical acclaim and wider attention in 2017. Before its release we asked her to make a rare return to the Tiny Desk for something special.
S11E5Daniil Trifonov
Jan 12, 2018Watch the young Russian musician, who The Times of London calls “the most astounding pianist of our age,” play a smart, Chopin-focused concert on a grand piano, precisely wedged behind the Tiny Desk.
S11E6Artists From The 'Take Me To The River' Tour
Jan 15, 2018More than a dozen artists gather behind the Tiny Desk to celebrate Memphis soul in a joyful, triumphant performance.
S11E7AHI
Jan 16, 2018The Ontario-based singer has a gruff but sweet voice with openly honest words behind soulful tunes of hope.
S11E8The Lemon Twigs
Jan 17, 2018Brothers Brian and Michael D'Addario seem like they beamed into the Tiny Desk from the year 1971, untouched by the 21st century.
S11E9Amadou and Mariam
Jan 19, 2018The Malian musicians, who've been playing together for nearly 40 years, bring some of the most lyrical melodies and joyful sounds we've ever had at the Tiny Desk.
S11E10St. Vincent
Jan 22, 2018The singer performed at the Tiny Desk without a warmup or soundcheck, with just her acoustic guitar and un-amplified voice, letting the wordplay in her songs shine through.
S11E11George Clinton & The P-Funk All Stars
Jan 24, 2018George Clinton brought his family, both immediate and extended, to the Tiny Desk for a set of classic cosmic slop.
S11E12Barbara Hannigan
Jan 26, 2018Eavesdrop on a beautiful recital of German songs from fin de siècle Vienna, when music was transitioning from the swells of romanticism to the uncharted waters of modernism.
S11E13Jamila Woods
Jan 29, 2018In three songs celebrating black ancestry and self-love, Woods demonstrated just how adept she is at creating songs rich with philosophical meaning that also move and groove.
S11E14Alice Smith
Jan 31, 2018The beloved singer-songwriter premiered three new songs while turning NPR's headquarters into a Harlem speakeasy.
S11E15Vicente García
Feb 2, 2018This under-the-radar singer from the Dominican Republic is starting to turn some heads. You'll see why in this Tiny Desk performance.
S11E16Hurray For The Riff Raff
Feb 5, 2018The music of Hurray For The Riff Raff builds bridges, unites people and forms communities. It's a spirit singer Alynda Segarra and the rest of the band bring to this memorable Tiny Desk performance.
S11E17Ibeyi
Feb 7, 2018Lisa-Kaindé and Naomi Díaz never fail to mesmerize. Watch the twin sisters perform a four-song set at the Tiny Desk.
S11E18The Crossrhodes
Feb 9, 2018The Crossrhodes showed up to the Tiny Desk with game faces on, bringing with it a locally cultivated, globally appreciated energy.
S11E19Marlon Williams
Feb 12, 2018Marlon Williams has a heart-stopping voice, is in love with a good, traditional blues or country tune, and writes songs about vampires and horror films.
S11E20Nick Hakim
Feb 14, 2018The music of Nick Hakim occupies a space and time that feels out of this world, with songs that explore the quietude of inner thoughts.
S11E21Betsayda Machado y Parranda El Clavo
Feb 16, 2018The Afro-Venezuelan collective brings the boisterous parranda sound to the Tiny Desk.
S11E22Big Daddy Kane
Feb 19, 2018One of the greatest to ever bless the mic treated the Tiny Desk audience to an office block party.
S11E23August Greene (Common, Robert Glasper, Karriem Riggins)
Feb 21, 2018August Greene, Common's new trio with Robert Glasper and Karriem Riggins, brought some special guest vocalists to the Tiny Desk.
S11E24Vagabon
Feb 23, 2018Laetitia Tamko, the artist known as Vagabon, is a 25-year-old, Cameroon-born musician with a big, tenor voice just bursting with new musical ideas.
S11E25Lee Ann Womack
Feb 26, 2018The Nashville star brought some good old country music stories to the Tiny Desk.
S11E26Roy Ayers
Mar 1, 2018Watch the 77-year-old jazz-funk icon perform “Everybody Loves The Sunshine” (and more) at the Tiny Desk.
S11E27Anna Meredith
Mar 2, 2018Out of nearly 700 performances at the Tiny Desk over the past decade, this one by British composer Anna Meredith is one of the most exhilarating.
S11E28Big K.R.I.T.
Mar 5, 2018The Mississippi rapper paid homage to his grandmother and performed songs from his new album 4eva Is a Mighty Long Time.
S11E29Alex Clare
Mar 7, 2018Clare's songs ask listeners to probe their own emotions through the lens of life’s bigger pictures. His visit to Bob Boilen’s desk is the perfect setting to bask in the power of his voice.
S11E30Kuinka
Mar 9, 2018Each year we get thousands of submissions for our annual Tiny Desk contest. Seattle's Kuinka was one of last year's entrants. While they didn't win, we loved them so much we invited them to come play.
S11E31John Prine
Mar 12, 201816mFor more than 45 years, the legendary John Prine has written some of the most powerful lyrics in the American music canon. He brings some of his best to this unforgettable Tiny Desk performance.
S11E32Raul Midón
Mar 15, 2018Raul Midón brought nothing but a guitar and his voice to an extended Tiny Desk set of dense, breathtaking jazz and soul textures.
S11E33Cornelius
Mar 19, 2018Cornelius' Keigo Oyamada deconstructs and reassembles music like it's a neon cubist-pop sculpture. On a rare U.S. tour, the Japanese band brought its complex cool to the Tiny Desk.
S11E34Väsen
Mar 23, 2018The Swedish trio brought a 30-string sonic blast to the Tiny Desk, performing on 12-string guitar, viola and the nyckelharpa (a fiddle with keys — think 15th century keytar).
S11E35Jenny And The Mexicats
Mar 26, 2018Sometimes frenetic, sometimes slow and luxurious, the grooves the band creates are the perfect cushion for Jenny Ball's impassioned singing and engaging stage presence.
S11E36I'm With Her
Mar 28, 2018Aoife O'Donovan, Sarah Jarosz and Sara Watkins are bound by a love for bluegrass, chamber music, jazz, storytelling and singing.
S11E37Masta Ace
Mar 30, 2018The Juice Crew legend brought his biggest hit, "Born To Roll," and a heartfelt recollection of his personal journey to the Tiny Desk.
S11E38Robin Olson
Apr 1, 2018Hear the elusive avant-garde pianist debut a new piece, etched in shimmering chords and dark, lamenting octaves.
S11E39Dee Dee Bridgewater
Apr 2, 2018Bridgewater connects with her roots, her birthplace and the town she's loved all her life, with a set of songs from Memphis.
S11E40Dan Auerbach
Apr 4, 2018The guitarist and singer for The Black Keys and The Arcs brings his Easy Eye Sound Revue to the Tiny Desk, recalling a time and sound from the '60s when southern R&B, including Nashville, was a force.
S11E41Rhye
Apr 9, 2018See the band perform a rare evening Tiny Desk concert, illuminated by flickering lights
S11E42Lara Bello
Apr 10, 201816mFlamenco, jazz and classical share the stage in this Tiny Desk from one of our favorite Spanish composers.
S11E43Tyler Childers
Apr 11, 201810mTyler Childers writes songs about hard lives and hard love with direct heart and a soulful Kentucky drawl.
S11E44Jorge Drexler
Apr 13, 2018The Uruguayan singer-songwriter is one of the finest lyricists operating today. Watch his stunning performance behind the Tiny Desk.
S11E45The Breeders
Apr 16, 2018The Breeders' dreamy scuzz sounds wiser and more frazzled at the Tiny Desk, featuring the same lineup behind the band's breakout, 1993 album Last Splash.
S11E46O.C.
Apr 18, 2018The veteran Brooklyn rapper was an underground star during hip-hop's golden era. At the Tiny Desk, O.C. made it clear that he hasn't lost his edge.
S11E47John Moreland
Apr 20, 2018When you hear John Moreland's sweet voice, it's hard to believe he spent years singing in punk, metal-core and hardcore bands. He plays acoustic guitar now, but his songs are still full of passion.
S11E48Logan Richardson
Apr 23, 2018Hear a triumphant fusion of jazz, rock and blues that moves with momentum and fresh anticipation. Logan Richardson plays with a lyrical intensity that is both focused and free.
S11E49Superorganism
Apr 25, 2018The multinational band of theatrically fun and talented musicians in Superorganism mix melody and mischievous with almost Seussian folly.
S11E50ÌFÉ
Apr 27, 2018ÌFÉ isn't playing anything new. In fact, the band takes on something quite old: ritual Afro-Caribbean music that takes a lifetime to absorb and master.
S11E51Bedouine
Apr 30, 2018Bedouine is Azniv Korkejian, a singer and guitarist who echoes sounds from the 1960's North American folk songwriters, but with vocal inflections closer to Leonard Cohen than to Joni Mitchell.
S11E52GZA & The Soul Rebels
May 2, 2018Most rap fans would name RZA as the head of the Wu-Tang Clan. But Wu purists know that GZA, or The Genius, is the crew's unspoken elder statesman.
S11E53Darlingside
May 4, 2018Even if the world came to an end, there's still beauty and hope in all of us and in song. That about sums up the wistful mystery that is the music of Darlingside.
S11E54Gordi
May 7, 2018In three songs from Reservoir, Gordi keeps her voice both unadorned and centered within warm, cool arrangements that include piano, guitar, pedal steel, a harmonium named Barbara, and more.
S11E55Bela Fleck And Abigail Washburn
May 11, 2018Bela Fleck and Abigail Washburn are two American musical treasures. This husband-and-wife banjo duo write original tunes steeped in the roots of folk music.
S11E56Naia Izumi
May 14, 2018The winner of this year's Tiny Desk Contest makes his official debut behind the desk.
S11E57Khruangbin
May 16, 2018This trio from Houston, Texas makes trance-inducing music heavily inspired by 1960s and '70s funk and soul from, of all places, Thailand.
S11E59The Band's Visit
May 21, 2018Tony Shalhoub, Katrina Lenk and the cast of the Tony-nominated play The Band's Visit marked the first Broadway performance at the Tiny Desk.
S11E60Juanes & Mon Laferte
May 23, 2018The Colombian pop star and Chilean rising star brought their duet tour to the Tiny Desk.
S11E61Ill Camille
May 25, 2018The Los Angeles rapper and Kendrick Lamar collaborator performed four songs from her excellent album, Heirloom.
S11E62Third Coast Percussion
May 29, 2018Watch the Chicago-based ensemble conjure otherworldly sounds from steel pipes, tuned cowbells and a bowl that sings.
S11E63Trouble Funk
May 30, 2018We squeezed 12 go-go musicians behind the Tiny Desk. Watch what ensued.
S11E65Daniel Caesar
Jun 4, 2018Watch the R&B star-in-the-making perform three songs, including a guest appearance by H.E.R.
S11E66Grace VanderWaal
Jun 6, 2018The 14-year-old singer who signed to Columbia after winning America's Got Talent, dazzles the Tiny Desk with her breathtaking voice.
S11E67MILCK
Jun 8, 2018The one-woman riot who made headlines during the inaugural Women's March On Washington visits the Tiny Desk.
S11E68Jorja Smith
Jun 11, 2018Watch the rising U.K. star perform intimate renditions of "Blue Lights," "On My Mind" and "Teenage Fantasy" with a full band.
S11E69GoldLink
Jun 13, 2018The D.C. rapper brought quite the crew to his Tiny Desk performance.
S11E70Yissy García & Bandancha
Jun 15, 2018Come for one of Havana's most talented acts. Stay for García's incredible mohawk.
S11E71Khalid
Jun 18, 2018Watch the 20-year-old star perform acoustic versions of "Location," "Saved" and "Young Dumb & Broke."
S11E72The Messthetics
Jun 20, 2018The bassist and drummer from D.C.'s pioneering punk band Fugazi join guitarist Anthony Pirog for a set of thrilling, sometimes loud and frenetic instrumentals.
S11E73From The Top
Jun 22, 2018A handful of teenagers, and a 12-year-old violinist, from the radio show From the Top, give sparkling performances, proving there's a bright future for classical music.
S11E74Rakim
Jun 25, 2018Watch the New York rap icon perform "Paid In Full" and "Know The Ledge," as well as a new song for Marvel's Luke Cage, at the Tiny Desk.
S11E75Dave Matthews
Jun 27, 2018The star sheds his band for a warm, winning, utterly game, happily overstuffed five-song performance of songs from across his long career.
S11E76Golden Dawn Arkestra
Jun 29, 2018Join the "Children of the Sun" - or sit back and enjoy the spectacle - in this Tiny Desk experience.
S11E77PJ Morton
Jul 2, 2018New Orleans' native son brought his musical Gumbo — and a 10-piece orchestra — to the Tiny Desk for some well-seasoned soul and a lesson in creative freedom.
S11E78Frédéric Yonnet With Special Guest Dave Chappelle
Jul 9, 2018Yonnet is a magician on the harmonica. You'll see why he's performed with Stevie Wonder, Prince and Ed Sheeran.
S11E79Rev. Sekou And The Seal Breakers
Jul 10, 2018Rev. Sekou and the Seal Breakers gave one of the most rousing Tiny Desks we've ever had, opening with one question: "Do you want to get free?"
S11E80Mumu Fresh Feat. Black Thought & DJ Dummy
Jul 11, 2018Occasionally a new voice emerges so rich in experience that the only way to describe it is old soul.
S11E81The Midnight Hour
Jul 18, 2018A Tribe Called Quest's Ali Shaheed Muhammad and composer Adrian Younge brought their Luke Cage-inspired collaboration to the Tiny Desk.
S11E82Ólafur Arnalds
Jul 19, 2018The Icelandic composer is joined by two "ghost" pianists, making mysterious and memorable music at the Tiny Desk.
S11E83The King's Singers
Jul 23, 2018The storied vocal ensemble brings close harmony singing to a diverse set list that includes a Beatles tune and a bawdy madrigal from the 1500s.
S11E84Lalah Hathaway
Jul 25, 2018The veteran singer showcases her soaring powerfully expressive voice in a performance that bridges several generations of classic soul.
S11E85Flasher
Jul 30, 2018The precise serrations of Washington, D.C. band Flasher get softened for a visit to the Tiny Desk — their vocals, normally side-by-side rushing electric instruments, get the center stage treatment.
S11E86The Del McCoury Band
Aug 1, 2018Del McCoury has been performing, and updating, his take on bluegrass for some 60 years. At the Tiny Desk, he brought three traveling songs and some good yarns to share from his ample time on the road.
S11E87Haley Heynderickx
Aug 3, 2018One of our favorite new artists of 2018 visits the Tiny Desk.
S11E88Mac Miller
Aug 6, 2018Mac Miller reflects on his journey's peaks and valleys in a boisterous set of songs from Swimming, featuring special guest Thundercat on "What's the Use?"
S11E89DAWN
Aug 10, 2018DAWN has a breathless enthusiasm for shape-shifting pop music. She strips three songs to just the essentials, illuminating the impeccable songwriting behind her wild combination of sounds.
S11E90Tower Of Power
Aug 13, 2018Even from its beginnings in late-'60s Oakland, the band has always stood out. Fifty years later, its devotion to classic horn-driven soul remains unmatched, its passion and precision unchanged.
S11E91Erykah Badu
Aug 15, 2018The singer's performance at the Tiny Desk was an almost spiritual experience, leaving many at the NPR Music offices in awe.