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One of Kurt Cobain's Final Interviews - Incl. Extremely Rare Footage Hotney 3 Streams • 4 years ago

Kurt Cobain Interview - Incl. Rare Footage // Subscribe: http://goo.gl/Q2kKrD // USE THE TIMESTAMPS IN THE DESCRIPTION BELOW TO JUMP TO SPECIFIC QUESTIONS. One of Kurt Cobain's final interviews before his tragic death, this WatchMojo Presents video From the MUCH Vaults is an incredible look into the man and artist that we present on the day that would have been his 50th birthday. This raw video from 1993 features 6 minutes of very rarely seen footage from the original interview that was not aired on television. Nirvana's legacy still burns bright and their music continues to influence and inspire people to this day. We hope that you enjoy this thoughtful and engaged interview with a man who meant so much to so many people.

00:07 1) What are your favourite books and have they influenced your songwriting?

1:50 2) Is it hard write new material in a short timeframe after having had your entire life to the write the material for your first two albums?

02:39 3) There are a lot of baby references in your songs: wombs, babies’ breath; is this a huge part of your life…?

04:19 4) Do you think the old saying that you can’t buy happiness is true?

05:08 5) Now that you’ve had so much success, so quickly and so surprisingly, as well as a baby, your marriage, etc., what excites you now?

05:49 6) How do you personally cope with having private relationships being scrutinized publicly?

09:04 7) Is it weird to suddenly have lawyers and people who do that stuff for you?

10:40 8) Do you think being in the music industry for a long time makes you nutty?

11:48 9) Have you ever had second thoughts about bringing a child into the world, despite being able to see the world for what it is?

13:38 10) “Grunge”: where did the term come from?

17:19 11) One of the interesting things about Nirvana that you don’t talk about much is that you seem very concerned about sexism. How do you make people aware of that problem?

21:21 12) We’re doing a special on The Replacements, did they have any influence n you on as a songwriter or any of the music you did?

23:58 13) Did you get to meet anyone that you would consider your musical hero?

24:40 14) Tell me about the record you’re doing with William Burroughs.

25:50 15) One of the members of Nirvana said he was perturbed by your mainstream audience and wanted to just make music for your real fans...?

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SiR: NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert Hotney 1 Streams • 4 years ago

Watch SiR play "The Recipe", "New Sky" and "Wires In The Way" and "John Redcorn" at the Tiny Desk.

Did you know you can watch Tiny Desk Concerts on npr.org ONE WEEK before they go up on YouTube? Click here: https://www.npr.org/tinydesk

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SiR, the R&B singer from Inglewood, CA, seemed lost in thought as he stood behind the Tiny Desk. While his bandmates curiously bounced around the desk, joking and even searching for Bob Boilen, SiR remained particularly focused. About halfway through the performance, he eventually revealed what had been weighing on his heart. He told the NPR crowd he'd lost his infant godson a few days prior and dedicated the performance to him. "We're doing this for him. It took a lot for me to be here today ...but we're gonna get through this."

Since signing to hip-hop juggernaut Top Dawg Entertainment in 2017, Sir Darryl Farris been the most consistent, most reliable player on the roster outside of its original four (Jay Rock, Kendrick, Schoolboy Q and Ab-Soul.) His output has further solidified the label's stake in spaces outside of just rap music.

For his Tiny Desk concert, SiR treated the office to some of the best that his latest LP, Chasing Summer has to offer. Themes of regret loom throughout the album and he's never shied away from writing about personal flaws. His depiction of misdirected desires and heartbreak on "John Redcorn" and "The Recipe" reveal a cruel honesty that couples grapple with at times. The set was also a family affair with his mother and older brother offering support as two of the three background vocalists. We get a glimpse of his upbringing in the gospel choir once those harmonies open up.

SET LIST
"The Recipe"
"New Sky"
"Wires In The Way"
"John Redcorn"

MUSICIANS
SiR: vocals; Roger "Jooseondrums" Benford: drums; Terrall Whitehead: guitar; Samuel Davis: bass; Jacquelyn Farris: vocals; Davion Farris: vocals; Zyah Belle: vocals; Ledaris "L.J." Jones: keys

CREDITS
Producers: Bobby Carter, Morgan Noelle Smith; Creative director: Bob Boilen; Audio engineers: Josh Rogosin, James Willetts; Editor: Maia Stern; Videographers: Morgan Noelle Smith, CJ Riculan, Maia Stern; Executive producer: Lauren Onkey; VP, programming: Anya Grundmann; Photo: Laura Beltran Villamizar

Coldplay: NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert Hotney 2 Streams • 4 years ago

This performance was recorded on January 23, 2020. We will continue releasing Tiny Desk videos of shows that had already been taped. In light of current events, NPR is postponing new live tapings of Tiny Desk Concerts. In the meantime, check out Tiny Desk (home) concerts! They’re recorded by the artists in their home. It’s the same spirit — stripped-down sets, an intimate setting — just a different space.

Watch Coldplay play "Cry Cry Cry", "Viva La Vida", "Broken", "1999" (Prince cover) and "Champion Of The World" at the Tiny Desk.

Did you know you can watch new Tiny Desk concerts on npr.org ONE WEEK before they go up on YouTube? Click here: https://www.npr.org/tinydesk

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March 12, 2020 | Robin Hilton -- Shortly into Coldplay's soundcheck, singer Chris Martin cut off the opening song, "Cry Cry Cry," right in the middle. His band had brought along a nine-piece choir, and he asked them to take "Cry Cry Cry" one more time. When one of the singers asked if there was a problem, Martin replied, "No, I'm just in f****** heaven right now!"

That feeling was obvious throughout the performance. Watching Martin at the keys, with the For Love Choir behind him and Coldplay guitarist Jonny Buckland at his side, you'd be forgiven for thinking it was the happiest day of his life. Laughing, bouncing to the music and playing off the crowd, Martin and company gave one of the most jubilant, uplifting and memorable performances we've ever had at the Tiny Desk.

Watching their gospel-infused take on "Viva La Vida," it was hard not to beam with joy; hearing their stirring cover of Prince's "1999" brought on a mass urge to leap up and dance. The entire set was a perfectly executed showcase of the band's creative spirit and love of community through music.

"Viva La Vida" was the only older track Coldplay performed, in addition to the surprise Prince cover. (The band had just performed at a Prince tribute show in January.) The other three songs — "Cry Cry Cry," "Broken" and "Champion of the World" — are all from the band's stellar new album, Everyday Life, which was recorded with some of the singers on hand for the Tiny Desk. Martin joked that, "In a very real way, they've Photoshopped our songs to be much better than they actually are." Whether or not that's true, for at least this one sunny afternoon at the NPR Music offices, the choir — and Coldplay's inspired reworking of its own music — felt transcendent.

SET LIST
"Cry Cry Cry"
"Viva La Vida"
"Broken"
"1999" (Prince cover)
"Champion Of The World"

MUSICIANS
Chris Martin: vocals, keys; Jonny Buckland: guitar; Denise Green: vocals; Shaneka Hamilton: vocals; Dorian Holley: vocals; Stephen Mackey: vocals; Lamarcus Eldridge: vocals; Lawrence Young: vocals; Surrenity Xyz: vocals; Tiffany Smith: vocals; Mabvuto Carpenter: vocals

CREDITS
Producers: Bob Boilen, Morgan Noelle Smith, Maia Stern; Creative director: Bob Boilen; Audio engineers: Josh Rogosin, James Willetts; Editor: Maia Stern; Videographers: Maia Stern, Morgan Noelle Smith, CJ Riculan, Jack Corbett, Melany Rochester; Associate Producer: Bobby Carter; Production Assistant: Shanti Hands; Executive producer: Lauren Onkey; VP, programming: Anya Grundmann; Photo: Emily Bogle/NPR

Snoh Aalegra: NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert Hotney 6 Streams • 4 years ago

Watch Snoh Aalegra play "Love Like That", "I Want You Around", "Whoa", "Fool For You" and "Find Someone Like You" at the Tiny Desk.

Did you know you can watch new Tiny Desk concerts on npr.org ONE WEEK before they go up on YouTube? Click here: https://www.npr.org/tinydesk

Follow NPR Music:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/nprmusic
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nprmusic

Feb. 18, 2020 | Sidney Madden -- Almost without trying, Snoh Aalegra has an unforgettable presence. Strolling into NPR's music department on the day of her Tiny Desk Concert debut, the striking Iranian-Swedish singer donned Off-White Nike Dunks, baggy jeans, dewy skin and a sleek ponytail, carrying herself with the kind of camera-ready, cool-girl aura that silenced a mass of people waiting for her. Even with all that, the moment she started to sing is when the real beauty shone through.

Like a fragile candle flame in a pool of melting wax, the texture of Aalegra's voice mesmerizes without overpowering. The 32-year-old has spent years perfecting that balance. Drawing her musical cues from Brandy and Sade while racking up a list of collaborators such as Vince Staples, James Fauntleroy and, most recently Pharrell Williams, Aalegra always finds her groove in the unexpected pockets of emotion. Much of her latest album, 2019's -Ugh, those feels again, is an ode to the comfortability of love, one that's even more appreciated within the close confines of the Tiny Desk.

On this day in particular, Aalegra's tracks were stripped of their punchier, album-version kick drums and trap echoes. In their absence, it's Aalegra's delicate vocal runs and chemistry with her supporting singers that resonated most. "I Want You Around" and "Whoa," which usually rest on a bed of glitchy, spiraling production, felt lighter thanks to the dreamy string section, and by the time she sang her concert closer, "Find Someone Like You," the room was in full swoon. It's clear that at just 16 minutes, Aalegra and her crew knew how to create a memorable moment.

SET LIST
"Love Like That"
"I Want You Around"
"Whoa"
"Fool For You"
"Find Someone Like You"

MUSICIANS
Snoh Aalegra: vocals; O'Neil "Doctor O" Palmer: keys; Jef Villaluna: guitar; George "Spanky" McCurdy: drums; Ron Poindexter: vocals; Porsha Clay: vocals; Ashley Parham: violin; Johnny Walker, Jr.: cello; Asali McIntyre: violin; Brandon Lewis: viola; Thaddaeus Tribbett: Bass

CREDITS
Producers: Sidney Madden, Bobby Carter, Morgan Noelle Smith, Kara Frame; Creative director: Bob Boilen; Audio engineers: Josh Rogosin, Patrick Boyd; Editor: Kara Frame; Videographers: Kara Frame, Maia Stern, Jack Corbett, CJ Riculan; Associate Producer: Bobby Carter; Executive producer: Lauren Onkey; VP, programming: Anya Grundmann; Photo: Laura Beltran Villamizar/NPR

Sting And Shaggy: NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert Hotney 5 Streams • 4 years ago

Watch Sting And Shaggy play "Englishman in New York", "Don't Make Me Wait" and "Shape of My Heart/Lucid Dreams" at the Tiny Desk.

Watch Tiny Desk Concerts ONE WEEK before they go on YouTube at https://www.npr.org/tinydesk

Follow NPR Music:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/nprmusic
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nprmusic

July 10, 2019 | Josh Rogosin -- Sting and Shaggy might not be the most likely musical pairing. But one thing is certain, they love playing each other's music. On a bright autumn morning, the legends arrived at the NPR Music office bleary-eyed yet excited to play for the diverse staff of Shaggy and Sting fans. What surprised many of my NPR colleagues is just how well the collaboration works.

Their success as a duo shouldn't come as a total shock. After all, pulsing through many Police songs (Sting's famed band of the '70s and '80s) is a Reggae backbeat. It's impossible not to hear the influence in classics like "Walking On The Moon" and "So Lonely."

Shaggy (zoinks! - his nom de guerre comes from the Scooby-Doo cartoon character) was born in Kingston, Jamaica. He moved to New York when he was 18 and his music evokes only good vibes. The positive energy he brought to their opening song, "Englishman [and Jamaican] In New York," had everyone in the room grinning ear to ear, "early morning Reggae style," as he put it. After the tune, Sting announced "I never sang that song before 8 PM... Ever!"

Sting's familiar, raspy voice was accompanied by his battered 1957 Fender Precision bass he's plucked for over 25 years. His long-time guitarist and collaborator, Dominic Miller, strummed Reggae offbeats on acoustic guitar and co-wrote the hauntingly beautiful "Shape Of My Heart." That song is mashed-up with Juice Wrld's "Lucid Dream," sung by Gene Noble, offering a refreshing counter to Sting's nuanced melody.

Shaggy affectionately refers to his collaborator as "Stingy," putting his arm around him mid-performance. It's easy to see the comradery that being on the road together affords these veteran musicians, to say nothing of the breath of fresh air they bring to each other's music.

SET LIST
"Englishman in New York"
"Don't Make Me Wait"
"Shape of My Heart/Lucid Dreams"

MUSICIANS
Sting: vocals, bass, guitar; Shaggy: vocals; Dominic Miller: guitar; Gene Noble: vocals; Melissa Musique: vocals

CREDITS
Producers: Abby O'Neill, Morgan Noelle Smith; Creative Director: Bob Boilen; Audio Engineer: Josh Rogosin; Videographers: Morgan Noelle Smith, CJ Riculan, Maia Stern, Beck Harlan; Editor: Kaylee Domzalski; Associate Producer: Bobby Carter; Photo: Cameron Pollack/NPR

Summer Walker: NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert Hotney 4 Streams • 4 years ago

Watch Summer Walker play"Session 32", "Wasted", "Girls Need Love", "Riot" and "Playing Games" at the Tiny Desk.

Watch Tiny Desk Concerts ONE WEEK before they go on YouTube at https://www.npr.org/tinydesk

More from NPR Music:
Tiny Desk Concerts: https://www.npr.org/tinydesk
Twitter: https://twitter.com/nprmusic
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nprmusic

Oct. 21, 2019 | Rodney Carmichael -- Seconds before the cameras started to roll, Summer Walker showed just how much she was willing to sacrifice for her day at the Tiny Desk: She clipped her nails. It wasn't an aesthetic choice but a pragmatic one. Not even her love for a fresh set of bedazzled acrylics would get in the way of her strumming the soul out of her six-string Fender electric. The guitar wasn't the only thing she'd brought with her from Atlanta. In her lap sat "Friend," the pink stuffed animal who no doubt provided a bit of emotional support during a five-song set that forced the shy enigma out of her creative shell.

"Look, I'm really freaking excited to be here but I have social anxiety like a mother******," Walker told the NPR crowd at the end of her set, barely mumbling the expletive in an attempt to censor herself. "I'm freaked the hell out, I'm sweating, but this is so exciting for me."

A 23-year old singer-songwriter with an uncensored pen and brown-liquor vocals, Walker has become something of a patron saint for colored girls who've considered bossing up when heartbreak is too much. With the release of her official studio debut Over It, she made history last week by racking up the biggest streaming week of any female R&B artist ever. Meanwhile, the first lady of upstart label Love Renaissance (LVRN) is lowkey leading a sonic revolution in Atlanta that's turning the trap capital back into an R&B town. Her team was equally insistent on tricking out the Tiny Desk space by hanging lights that brought a diffuse glow to Walker's creative set.

For an artist who rarely grants interviews and admittedly dreads the public spotlight — despite an Instagram feed that clearly shows off her humorous, exhibitionist flair — Walker's Tiny Desk is revealing. In the span of 15 minutes, she performs fan favorites ("Session 32," "Wasted," "Riot") and the song that made Drake hop in her DMs, "Girls Need Love," before ending with current single "Playing Games." Even behind the bright lights and oversized eyeglass frames, her unadorned soul shines through.

SET LIST
"Session 32"
"Wasted"
"Girls Need Love"
"Riot"
"Playing Games"

MUSICIANS
Summer Walker: vocals, guitar; Elijah Whittingham: guitar; Angel White: vocals; Autumn Tuesdae: vocals; Slim.wav: keys; Stox: bass; Remey Williams: drums

CREDITS
Producers: Rodney Carmichael, Bobby Carter, Morgan Noelle Smith; Creative Director: Bob Boilen; Audio Engineers: Josh Rogosin, Patrick Boyd; Videographers: Morgan Noelle Smith, Niki Walker, Maia Stern, Beck Harlan, Jack Corbett; Executive Producer: Lauren Onkey; Senior VP, Programming: Anya Grundmann; Photo: Laura Beltran Villamizar/NPR

Raphael Saadiq: NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert Hotney 4 Streams • 4 years ago

Watch Raphael Saadiq play at the Tiny Desk.

This Tiny Desk concert was part of Tiny Desk Fest, a four-night series of extended concerts performed in front of a live audience and streamed live on YouTube, Twitter and Facebook.

More from NPR Music:
Tiny Desk Concerts: https://www.npr.org/tinydesk
Twitter: https://twitter.com/nprmusic
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nprmusic

Dec. 5, 2019 | Rodney Carmichael -- The first time Raphael Saadiq played Tiny Desk, "it was really a tiny desk."

"And honestly we were kinda complaining about it," Saadiq laughs, recalling that performance in 2009, back when hosting intimate little concerts behind Bob Boilen's desk was still a fledgling idea at NPR Music. "Like, we kinda didn't wanna do it," he admits in hindsight. It wasn't until the video-taped version of his set hit the Internet and began picking up views that the lightbulb went off for Saadiq, too. "It's like probably the biggest streaming I ever had, so it's kinda good to be back — not kinda good; it's really good to be back."

As he tells this story, exactly one decade later, Saadiq's return to a slightly bigger Tiny Desk — to close out NPR's live-streamed Tiny Desk Fest — coincides with the biggest record of his career. Named for one of three brothers who succumbed to addiction, Jimmy Lee is his most personal, most vulnerable, most fearless work yet, and it comes at a point, more than 30 years into his career, when Saadiq has nothing left to prove or lose.

This is the same man, after all, who lit the fuse for soul's popular revival as the lead for Tony! Toni! Tone!, at a time when black bands bordered near-extinction. Then he led an entire generation of artists to the well and made them drink. In addition to a solo discography that cakewalks backward through the latter half of 20th-century funk and soul, his production credits read like a score card of black music MVPs over the last 20 years (D'Angelo, Erykah Badu, Mary J. Blige, Ledisi, John Legend, Solange). If he's made it look effortless, that's because, sometimes, it has been.

Take the time when he was walking around the East Village in New York one day out of the blue. "I was like, let me see where can I get a joint from," as he recalls during our post-performance conversation. The thought led him to Electric Lady Studios, where D'Angelo had taken up residence while working on his second solo album. "I rung the bell: 'Is D'Angelo here?' He opens the door. He's like, 'What's up!' I said, 'You got a joint?' 'Hell yeah I got a joint.' He's like, 'Can we do a song?' I'm like, 'Yeah, whatever....'"

Needless to say the two already had history together — they'd co-written and co-produced "Lady," D'Angelo's biggest hit until that point — and they were about to make more: "We walk in and we do "Untitled [(How Does It Feel)"] in maybe like two hours," he says.

True to form, Saadiq is still a talent magnet. For his Tiny Desk Fest set — recorded on Halloween, which explains the costumed crowd — he's joined by rising soul singer and songwriter Lucky Daye, who released his Grammy-nominated debut album, Painted, and made his own Tiny Desk debut this year. Daye performs two songs from that album, in addition to backing Saadiq, who also brought along a sousaphone player for his Instant Vintage classic, "Still Ray."

His collaborative performance with Daye is yet another testament to Saadiq's widespread influence, which remains something of an open secret to those in the know. Meanwhile, Jimmy Lee continues to garner Saadiq the kind of attention typically reserved for newer artists. After a career spent contributing so much of his genius behind the scenes and painting over the dark spots in his past with bright, ecstatic strokes, his latest feat feels like a revelation.

"I'm really just shocked about my whole career," he says. "People say Raphael Saadiq is the most slept-on artist. I think I slept on myself, too. I would read this all the time [and] go, 'Slept on? I'm slept on? Cause I ain't Kanye? Cause I ain't talking loud?' Naw, they know."

Indeed, we always have.

SET LIST
"I'm Feeling Love"
"Be Here"
"This World Is Drunk"
"Love You Too Much" (Lucky Daye)
"Call" (Lucky Daye)
"Still Ray"

MUSICIANS
Raphael Saadiq: vocals, guitar; Lucky Daye: vocals; Rob Bacon: guitar, vocals; Alvin Ford: drums; DaQuantae "Q" Johnson: bass; Daniel Crawford: keys; Brent Gossett: sousaphone

CREDITS
Producers: Abby O'Neill, Bobby Carter, Morgan Noelle Smith; Creative director: Bob Boilen; Audio engineers: Josh Rogosin, Natasha Branch; Videographers: Morgan Noelle Smith, Tsering Bista, Kara Frame, CJ Riculan, Jack Corbett; Production assistant: Zemoria Mathis; Executive producer: Lauren Onkey; VP, programming: Anya Grundmann; Photo: Mhari Shaw/NPR

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