Lars Gotrich | December 17, 2025
The Tiny Desk hasn't seen string lights, paper snowflakes and garlands in a while. The holiday show is a tradition we love — and have missed — at NPR Music, so when considering an artist to deck the halls of the office, I kept coming back to Sixpence None the Richer.

So much of the holiday season, especially as we grow older, is about finding a balance between bright lights and dark nights. Sixpence None the Richer's music finds depth in the in-between, with buoyant melodies that twist and twirl, and lyrics underpinned by awe and wonder. "The Last Christmas" slowly waltzes the opening of this set, exploring the endings and beginnings of parenthood, inspired by the birth of guitarist Matt Slocum's first child. Leigh Nash introduces "It Came Upon a Midnight Clear" as a holiday standard she listens to year-round, its depictions of angels — whom she brilliantly calls "alien-adjacent" — a source of comfort. Nash also shares "Eternal Gifts," from one of her solo records, her candied voice sitting between a lilt and a twang as pedal steel rumbles and recedes beneath.

But you can't bring Sixpence None the Richer to the Tiny Desk and not ask the band to play some of its most defining work. "Melody of You," to me, is a modern psalm — and of a piece with Christmas, as a love letter from an artist to their creator. And then, of course, there's the song that keeps finding new life. Coming up on its 30 birthday, "Kiss Me" has taken the band around the world and found fans in unexpected places; Slocum joked with me that it's given him cred with his daughters. But "Kiss Me" also provides a simple sweetness at a moment when it's desperately needed. Before she sings, Nash sends us off with this message: "All the hope and love in the world to you, and happy holidays."

And if you are looking for more seasonal cheer, you can stream holiday music 24/7 from NPR stations across the country, exclusively available on the NPR App. Just click on the Music tab.

SET LIST
"The Last Christmas"
"It Came Upon a Midnight Clear"
"Melody of You"
"Eternal Gifts"
"Kiss Me"

MUSICIANS
Leigh Nash: vocals
Matt Slocum: guitar
Justin Cary: bass
Jon Radford: drums
Steve Hindalong: percussion
Phil Madeira: accordion, lap steel

TINY DESK TEAM
Producer: Lars Gotrich
Director/Editor: Maia Stern
Audio Technical Director: Neil Tevault
Host/Series Producer: Bobby Carter
Videographers: Maia Stern, Joshua Bryant, Mitra I. Arthur
Audio Engineer: Josephine Nyounai
Production Assistants: Dora Levite, Dhanika Pineda
Photographer: Zayrha Rodriguez
Tiny Desk Team: Kara Frame, Josh Newell
Executive Producer: Suraya Mohamed
Executive Director: Sonali Mehta
Series Creators: Bob Boilen, Stephen Thompson, Robin Hilton

#nprmusic #tinydesk #sixpencenonethericher

Support for NPR Music comes from Moises. A platform created by musicians, for musicians and used by 70 million artists worldwide – to learn, create, and collaborate. Available for download.

Tom Huizenga | December 12, 2025
For classical guitarist Sean Shibe, conventions and limitations are made to be broken. As expected, he plays Spanish standard repertoire and intricate Baroque tunes on his nylon-strung guitar as well as anyone. Note the quiet, wistful intimacy Shibe offers in a cancion by Federico Mompou and a Bach sarabande. Shibe is so inside the music that his cheek often rests on the top of his instrument.

The Scottish guitarist loves to plug in, too. He knows how to shred, yet he can also make his electric guitar sound as light as a butterfly’s wing — as in the ethereal closing number in this set, “High on a Rocky Ledge,” by the eccentric American street musician Moondog.

Shibe is fearless in the face of challenges, which explains why the bulk of his Tiny Desk set is devoted to the new, finger-twisting music written for him by English composer Thomas Adès. “He explodes the technical limits of the instrument,” Shibe explains. “He explodes my hands as well. He almost explodes the guitar.” From imitating bells in tricky harmonics to frenzied marches of complex chords and avalanches of notes, the music looks all but unplayable as you watch Shibe’s fingers fly over the entire fretboard. But close your eyes and the music sounds fresh and confident, mapping new territory for the classical guitar.

SET LIST
Thomas Adès: Courante – Here was a swift (for Max Ernst)
Federico Mompou: Canción No. 6
Thomas Adès: Carillon de Ville (for Hector Berlioz)
Thomas Adès: Overture, Queen of the Spiders
J.S. Bach: Sarabande (from Suite in E minor, BWV 996)
Moondog: “High on a Rocky Ledge”

MUSICIANS
Sean Shibe: guitar

TINY DESK TEAM
Producer: Tom Huizenga
Director/Editor: Kara Frame
Audio Technical Director: Josh Newell
Host/Series Producer: Bobby Carter
Videographers: Kara Frame, Maia Stern
Audio Engineer: Josephine Nyounai
Production Assistants: Dhanika Pineda, Dora Levite
Photographer: Michael Zamora
Tiny Desk Team: Joshua Bryant, Ashley Pointer
Series Editor: Lars Gotrich
Executive Producer: Suraya Mohamed
Executive Director: Sonali Mehta
Series Creators: Bob Boilen, Stephen Thompson, Robin Hilton

#tinydesk #nprmusic #seanshibe

Support for NPR Music comes from Moises. A platform created by musicians, for musicians and used by 70 million artists worldwide – to learn, create, and collaborate. Available for download.

Don Trip | Remember Raheem (Live Performance)

BigXthaPlug performs "The Largest" and "All The Way" at Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve with Ryan Seacrest.

#RockinEve

Daddy Yankee performs a medley of his hits at Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve with Ryan Seacrest.

#rockineve

The temperature is rising cuz 50 Cent in the house 🌡️🔥

Keep watching ABC for more Rockin' Eve!

#RockinEve

Suraya Mohamed | December 29, 2025
In October, the third international edition of the Tiny Desk concert series launched at the Google office in São Paulo, Brazil. Recorded live in front of an audience, the performances are selected and produced by Anonymous Content Brazil and Amabis with input from NPR Music. You can watch all of the shows on Tiny Desk Brasil’s YouTube channel. Here is the series premiere featuring João Gomes. The description below, translated here from Portuguese to English, was written by journalist and contributor Lorena Calábria.

On his way to Tiny Desk Brasil, João Gomes was approached by a fan outside his hotel. When asked, “What are you doing in São Paulo?” the singer promptly replied, “I'm going there to make history!” It is with this conviction that the artist from Pernambuco inaugurates the Brazilian version, representing contemporary Northeastern Brazilian music. The choice makes even more sense considering the similarities between the artist's trajectory and the program's concept. Like Tiny Desk, Gomes began his career unpretentiously, with intimate recordings in limited spaces. His music, authentic and simple, reflects the characteristics of the program's performances. Both achieved notoriety through the internet.

Born in Serrita, Pernambuco, João Fernando Gomes Valério moved to Petrolina in his childhood, where he attended the church choir. Later, he ventured into rap battles. It was during his technical course in agriculture that, encouraged by friends, he discovered his talent as a singer. He began recording homemade videos, standing out for his deep and calm voice. In 2021, his career took off: with the release of “Meu Pedaço de Pecado” at the age of 18, he went viral on social media. Since then, he has become a phenomenon, uniting forró de vaquejada with piseiro, a popular subgenre in the Northeast of Brazil. His voice captivates crowds, celebrating the culture of the sertão (Brazilian hinterland) in romantic verses.

After six studio albums, João Gomes released 'Dominguinho' in 2025, a musical project in collaboration with Mestrinho and Jota.pê. Featuring new songs and reinterpretations, the work evokes the tranquility of a Sunday.

For Tiny Desk Brasil, João prepared something different, with a band specially assembled for the occasion. He describes the group enthusiastically: "It's full of great musicians. I called musicians I like and wanted to play with. What we're going to do is going to be crazy. Can we make mistakes? Yes. But it will all be genuine," he says, excitedly. The repertoire includes two songs that, in his words, "deserved a second chance, a new heart": "Reencontro" and "Deusa de Itamaracá.”

SET LIST
“Dengo”
“Deusa de Itamaracá”
“Meu Cafofo”
“Pra que fui me Apaixona”
“Meu Pedaço de Pecado”
“Reencontro”
“Aquelas Coisas”
“Eu Tenho a Senha”

MUSICIANS
João Gomes: vocals
Kainã do Jêje: drums
Gilu Amaral: percussion
Michael Pipoquinha: bass
Chibatinha: guitar
Pedro Porto: acoustic guitar
Jeovanny: accordion
Nilson sax: woodwinds

TINY DESK BRASIL TEAM
Executive Producers: Bárbara Reis Teixeira, Lívia Barros, Mariana Amabis, Renata Dumont
Music Supervisor: AMABIS (Gui Amabis, Mariana Amabis, Rica Amabis)
General Director: Raphael Vieira
Art Director: Coh Amaral
Executive Producers, Anonymous Content: David Davoli, Nina Soriano
Production Coordinators: Anthonio Andreazza, Sergio Somenek
Assistant Executive Producer: Maju de Lucca
Production Manager: Leticia Costa Pinto
Production Assistant: Paulo Cortês
Production Intern: Eliasaf Filho
Technical Director/Audio Mix: Gustavo Lenza
Assistant Sound Engineer: Caio Alarcon
Musical Production Coordinator: Belma Ikeda
Technical Producer/Roadie: Pedro Silva
Musical Clearance: Bebel Brant
Set Manager: Gabriel Dotti
Assistant Set Manager: Miriam Paula
Controller: Marilia Pacheco
Finance Director: Bruno Teixeira
Finance Coordinator: Laís Monielli
Financial Analyst: Wine Vasconcelos
Assistant Audio Post Production: Jota Boaventura
Audio Backline: Eduardo Lemos Bastos, Emmerson Festagallo (Festa), Lourival Antonio do Santos, Regivaldo Almeida dos Santos
Director of Photography: Vinicius Brum
Camera Operator: Rita Albano
1st Assistant Camera: Isabela Estevam
2nd Assistant Camera: Dre Borges
Videographer: Isadora Brant
Logger: Julia Michelutti Cheliz
Photographer: Fernanda Carvalho
Gaffer: Dudu Portioli
Assistant Gaffer: Eurico Gonçalves
Art Production: Fábio Vizotto
Objects Producer: Ana Paula Braga
Assistant Art Director: Marina Faggin, Ana Secco
Objects Assistant Producers: Juliana Bonito, Victor Ferreira
Prop Master: André Castilho
Scenic Graphic Design: Douglas Cerdeira
Objects Assistants: Rodrigo Ferreira, Claudio Antonio, Fabio Carlos Braga, Andre de Sousa, Augusto C. Gonçalves
Art Assistants: Rui Batista de Souza, Henrique Mendez Tomita, Valmir Gonçalves da Silva
Editor: Marcio Canella
Post Production: Lucas V. Garcia
Graphic Design: Carolina Sanches

Dhanika Pineda | December 19, 2025
From the moment GIVĒON arrived at the Tiny Desk, there was much to celebrate: Beloved had just received a Grammy nomination for best R&B album, and Leon Thomas' performance of "Mutt" at the Tiny Desk was nominated for best R&B performance. Spirits were high, and GIVĒON brought all of that energy to this concert.

GIVĒON treats performance as therapy, pouring out his heart like a bottle of wine. "As much as I love having you guys here, these next couple songs are for me," he says. Even in his Tiny Desk (home) concert from 2021, the artist asked the virtual audience to just let him soak it all in.

The music in this set — really, across GIVĒON's entire catalogue — is nothing short of intense. From "RATHER BE," a modern ballad about staying in love regardless of flaws, to the heartache anthem "HEARTBREAK ANNIVERSARY," GIVĒON unabashedly pokes at all our vulnerabilities. Accompanied by an ensemble featuring strings and horns, GIVĒON delivers a Tiny Desk concert that celebrates all the complicated emotions that come with being human.

SET LIST
"RATHER BE"
"I CAN TELL"
"KEEPER"
"LIKE I WANT YOU"
"HEARTBREAK ANNIVERSARY"

MUSICIANS
GIVĒON: vocals
André Pinckney: bass, music director
Dennard Watson: keys
George "Spanky" McCurdy: drums
Nate Foley: guitar
Sherie Farris: violin
Cameron Johnson: trumpet
Kyla Moscovich: trumpet
Blake Cross: sax
Camry Jackson: background vocals
Raphael Smith: background vocals
Whitney Smith: background vocals

TINY DESK TEAM
Producers: Bobby Carter, Dhanika Pineda
Director/Editor: Joshua Bryant
Audio Technical Director: Josephine Nyounai
Videographers: Joshua Bryant, Maia Stern, Alanté Serene, Mitra I. Arthur
Audio Engineer: Tiffany Vera Castro
Production Assistant: Dora Levite
Photographer: Zayrha Rodriguez
Tiny Desk Team: Kara Frame, Josh Newell
Series Editor: Lars Gotrich
Executive Producer: Suraya Mohamed
Executive Director: Sonali Mehta
Series Creators: Bob Boilen, Stephen Thompson, Robin Hilton

#nprmusic #tinydesk #givēon

Support for NPR Music comes from Moises. A platform created by musicians, for musicians and used by 70 million artists worldwide – to learn, create, and collaborate. Available for download.

Music video by Zach Williams performing If God Lives Here (Live From Red Rocks).(C) 2025 Provident Label Group LLC, a division of Sony Music Entertainment

Stephen Thompson | December 8, 2025
For those of us who agonized over 2025’s song-of-the-summer sweepstakes, Annie DiRusso provided a much-needed balm: Super Pedestrian, an album crammed full of funny, charismatic, bittersweet pop-rock songs about doomed Gen-Z romance and the joy of movies, sports and other distractions from… well, doomed Gen-Z romance. Whether or not 2025 ever gave you the exact song of the summer you craved, DiRusso gave some of us our album of the summer.

Now, she’s back for a fresh victory lap. DiRusso recently released a deluxe edition of Super Pedestrian with some welcome bonus tracks, and now we can unveil her first-ever Tiny Desk concert. In a five-song pageant full of clever costuming, synchronized dance moves and even a few behind-the-back guitar riffs, DiRusso and her band replicate their killer stage show without sacrificing the intimacy that makes the Tiny Desk special.

Still, she had to modify her stage patter, at least a little bit.

“Usually, when I play shows, I do this whole bit where I tell the plot of School of Rock like it’s my life,” DiRusso says, “and then I introduce every member of the band as ‘Annie DiRusso.’ But when I tried that [in rehearsal], just talking, I just seemed like the biggest a****** ever.”

If you haven’t yet dug into her vibrant, infectious music, may this be your first step toward a triumphant summer of 2026, complete with a killer Annie DiRusso soundtrack.

SET LIST
“Back in Town”
“Hybrid”
“Legs”
“Coming Soon”
“It's Good to Be Hot in the Summer”

MUSICIANS
Annie DiRusso: vocals, guitar
James Eichman: guitar, banjo, background vocals
book NOT brooke: keys, bass, cello, background vocals
Eden Joel: bass, guitar, background vocals
Levi Bennett: drums

TINY DESK TEAM
Producer: Robin Hilton
Director: Maia Stern
Audio Technical Director: Josh Newell
Host/Series Producer: Bobby Carter
Video Editor: Kara Frame
Videographers: Maia Stern, Joshua Bryant, Kara Frame
Audio Engineer: Hannah Gluvna
Production Assistants: Dora Levite, Dhanika Pineda
Photographer: Alanté Serene
Series Editor: Lars Gotrich
Executive Producer: Suraya Mohamed
Executive Director: Sonali Mehta
Series Creators: Bob Boilen, Stephen Thompson, Robin Hilton

#tinydesk #nprmusic #anniedirusso

Support for NPR Music comes from Moises. A platform created by musicians, for musicians and used by 70 million artists worldwide – to learn, create, and collaborate. Available for download.

Kara Frame | December 10, 2025
It's rare these days for an artist to ask for fewer microphones, but after warming up in our space, Billy Strings did just that. Surrounded by his band, the bluegrass virtuoso brings back the spirit of Tiny Desk's early days. We capture, in his own words, "the way these instruments are meant to sound."

"We've been lucky to play a lot of cool venues," Strings says, pausing to reflect. "But this one's different. It has that same soul to it because — I've seen so many amazing performances that happened right here and I kind of believe that love and spirit kind of soaks into this environment, so just standing here feels like a special thing."

Strings found his roots in bluegrass from his dad. Since then, he's managed to expand the genre to new audiences, amassing a following of super fans — self-proclaimed "billy goats" — that sometimes schedule their lives around his tour. Once you meet Strings, it's not hard to understand why: He's a humble musician and a sorcerer of his craft, wielding a guitar as if it's a part of him.

SET LIST
"Red Daisy"
"My Alice"
"Malfunction Junction"
"Gild the Lily"

MUSICIANS
Billy Strings: vocals, guitar
Alex Hargreaves: fiddle
Billy Failing: banjo, background vocals
Royal Masat: bass, background vocals
Jarrod Walker: mandolin, background vocals

TINY DESK TEAM
Producer: Kara Frame
Director/Editor: Maia Stern
Audio Technical Director: Josh Newell
Host/Series Producer: Bobby Carter
Videographers: Maia Stern, Kara Frame, Joshua Bryant
Audio Engineer: Neil Tevault
Production Assistants: Dora Levite, Dhanika Pineda
Photographer: Michael Zamora
Series Editor: Lars Gotrich
Executive Producer: Suraya Mohamed
Executive Director: Sonali Mehta
Series Creators: Bob Boilen, Stephen Thompson, Robin Hilton

#billystrings #nprmusic #tinydesk

Support for NPR Music comes from Moises. A platform created by musicians, for musicians and used by 70 million artists worldwide – to learn, create, and collaborate. Available for download.

Lars Gotrich | December 5, 2025
There's nothing easy about the laid-back cool of Air's music. On record and for film soundtracks, the French electronic duo turns distressed dreams into symphonies plucked from cotton candy clouds — sonically light, but heavy with emotion. Yet to see Air's members perform live, everything seems so effortless.

Nicolas Godin and Jean-Benoît Dunckel have been looking back on Air's catalog recently, extending the anniversary tour of their debut album. Surrounded by synths and keys bearing Air's block-letter logo, the band opens this Tiny Desk with "Le Voyage de Pénélope," the piano-driven, interstellar fantasia from 1998's Moon Safari. Talkie Walkie's "Cherry Blossom Girl," a sweet love song with slightly sinister undertones, gets stripped back to acoustic guitar, a sparse Rhodes melody and close harmonies.

Officially released 25 years ago, Air's score for The Virgin Suicides, Sofia Coppola's first film, still captures a specific, yet universal nostaglia. In her essay for NPR Music, writer Paula Mejía says the soundtrack has "become a reference point for film composers aiming to create more than just an atmosphere for characters to inhabit." Watching Air perform "Highschool Lover" and "Dirty Trip" behind the Desk, a collective memory occurs — not from the movie itself, but our own teenage selves re-living crushes, awkward encounters and impossible-to-describe feelings.

SET LIST
"Le Voyage de Pénélope"
"Cherry Blossom Girl"
"Highschool Lover"
"Dirty Trip"

MUSICIANS
Nicolas Godin: piano, guitar, bass, vocals
Jean-Benoît Dunckel: keys, piano, vocals
Louis Delorme: drums, keys, vocals

TINY DESK TEAM
Producer: Robin Hilton
Director/Editor: Maia Stern
Audio Technical Director: Josh Newell
Host/Series Producer: Bobby Carter
Videographers: Maia Stern, Joshua Bryant, Sofia Seidel
Audio Engineer: Hannah Gluvna
Production Assistant: Dora Levite
Photographer: Maansi Srivastava
Tiny Desk Team: Kara Frame, Ashley Pointer
Series Editor: Lars Gotrich
Executive Producer: Suraya Mohamed
Executive Director: Sonali Mehta
Series Creators: Bob Boilen, Stephen Thompson, Robin Hilton

#nprmusic #tinydesk #air

Support for NPR Music comes from Moises. A platform created by musicians, for musicians and used by 70 million artists worldwide – to learn, create, and collaborate. Available for download.

Suraya Mohamed | November 24, 2025
This is the very first K-pop band to play behind the Tiny Desk. SEVENTEEN’s name comes from an equation: 13 members + 3 teams + 1 group. Those three teams focus on hip-hop, vocal and performance to come together as one. SEVENTEEN (SVT for short) recently celebrated its 10th anniversary with a world tour, performing in big stadiums for millions of fans (aka Carats). After their last U.S. concert in Washington, D.C., five of the members stopped by the NPR Music office to play in front of what’s likely their smallest audience ever.

Bred from an industry that’s all about a polished look and sound, these members put a lot of trust into our Tiny Desk team to be vulnerable in our space. Just like most artists that play our series, they were nervous, but you can see how much fun Dino, Seungkwan, Joshua, Vernon and Mingyu (from left to right) have as they casually talk between songs. It also doesn't hurt that the crowd — filled with screaming fans — made them feel at ease. SEVENTEEN's set features a medley of old and new songs, which is the perfect sampling of its extensive catalog, ending strong with "VERY NICE."

DK was scheduled to participate but sadly he lost his voice days before this concert. We were devastated, but it’s important to note how Joshua, Mingyu, Seungkwan, Vernon and Dino not only learned DK’s parts quickly, but executed them flawlessly. It wasn’t easy for them to change the arrangements of the songs just one day before the shoot. Despite the absence of DK and the other members, we think the show turned out really well and are grateful to have hosted the members for this special show.

SET LIST
“Super”
“Darl+ing”
“_WORLD”
“To you”
“HBD” 
“SOS” 
“Rock with you”
“CLAP”
“HOT”
“VERY NICE”

MUSICIANS
Joshua: vocals
Mingyu: vocals
Seungkwan: vocals
Vernon: vocals
Dino: vocals
Kitae Park: guitar
Donghyuk Lee: bass
Beomhun Lee: keys
Ayeong Han: keys
Sanghoon Lee: drums

TINY DESK TEAM
Producers: Suraya Mohamed, Kara Frame
Director/Editor: Kara Frame
Audio Technical Director: Josh Newell
Host/Series Producer: Bobby Carter
Videographers: Kara Frame, Maia Stern, Joshua Bryant, Mitra I. Arthur, Alanté Serene
Audio Engineer: Tiffany Vera Castro
Production Assistants: Dhanika Pineda, Dora Levite
Photographer: Zayrha Rodriguez
Series Editor: Lars Gotrich
Executive Producer: Suraya Mohamed
Executive Director: Sonali Mehta
Series Creators: Bob Boilen, Stephen Thompson, Robin Hilton

#tinydesk #nprmusic #seventeen

Lars Gotrich | Novermber 19, 2025
Here’s the thing: Goo Goo Dolls songs endure. Formed almost four decades ago, the rock band’s artistic ambition has always been connection — pop anthems that can be blasted from car speakers and in karaoke bars, and sung en masse. These songs stick around, but never wear out their welcome.

This set is bookended by songs from Dizzy Up the Girl, the 1998 album that found the sweet spot between catchy arena rockers and heartfelt power ballads. “Slide” is particularly suited to the space as John Rzeznik’s voice, which has aged gracefully into the velvet rasp he’s known for, rings clearly across the song’s careening melody. “Feel the Silence” is a sturdy and perhaps little-known gem from 2006’s Let Love In. “Not Goodbye (Close My Eyes),” too, is a meditative ballad waiting to find more ears.

But how could Goo Goo Dolls not close with “Iris”? Originally written for the City of Angels soundtrack, revived by Deadpool & Wolverine and consistently discovered by listeners seen by its romantic melodrama, “Iris” has returned from the brink of winking irony and been once again embraced for its desperate sincerity. At the Tiny Desk, our small office crowd joins the thousands who have been inside of this song and felt something real.

SET LIST
“Slide”
“Feel the Silence”
“Not Goodbye (Close My Eyes)”
“Iris”

MUSICIANS
John Rzeznik: vocals, guitar
Robby Takac: bass, background vocals
Jimmy McGorman: keys, piano, background vocals
Brad Fernquist: guitar, mandolin
Craig Macintyre: drums

TINY DESK TEAM
Producer: Lars Gotrich
Director/Editor: Kara Frame
Audio Technical Director: Josh Newell
Host/Series Producer: Bobby Carter
Videographers: Kara Frame, Maia Stern, Joshua Bryant
Audio Engineer: Valentina Rodríguez Sánchez
Production Assistants: Dora Levite, Dhanika Pineda
Photographer: Michael Zamora
Copy Editor: Daoud Tyler-Ameen
Executive Producer: Suraya Mohamed
Executive Director: Sonali Mehta
Series Creators: Bob Boilen, Stephen Thompson, Robin Hilton

#tinydesk #nprmusic #googoodolls

Robin Hilton | December 1, 2025
David Byrne has a long history of staging elaborate live shows, often with a sprawling cast of musicians, highly choreographed dancing and unusual instrumentation. So when we learned he wanted to have more than a dozen performers at the Tiny Desk, playing everything from cello, saxophone and marimba to a Brazilian timbau and zabumba (not to mention various guitars and keys), we weren't sure we'd be able to fit it all in.

It turns out his latest tour, for the album Who Is The Sky?, is well designed for our roughly 10 by 11-foot space. Though Byrne and his band do normally spread out across large stages, the set design for each show is almost completely bare, without any cables or amps, and the artists wear or carry compact, custom-made instruments to make it easier to move, almost like a marching band.

It's cozy, but Byrne and his band, in matching, brilliant blue suits, squeeze behind the Desk to perform four songs, opening with the euphoric "Everybody Laughs," followed by "Don't Be Like That," both from his new album. They also perform two Talking Heads songs: "(Nothing But) Flowers," from the 1988 album Naked, and a show-stopping version of "Life During Wartime," from 1979's Fear of Music.

It was a bucket-list performance for the Tiny Desk. Afterward, as the rest of the band and crew dispersed, Byrne hopped on a rented bike for a solo ride through the District on a beautiful, fall afternoon.

SET LIST
"Everybody Laughs"
"Don't Be Like That"
"(Nothing But) Flowers"
"Life During Wartime"

MUSICIANS
David Byrne: vocals, guitar
Mauro Refosco: percussion, music director
Ray Suen: guitar, bass, violin, music director
Kely Pinheiro: bass, cello
Daniel Mintseris: keys
Stephane San Juan: drums
Tim Keiper: percussion
Yuri Yamashita: percussion, marimba
Tendayi Kuumba: background vocals
Sasha Rivero: background vocals
Hannah Straney: background vocals
Sean Donovan: background vocals
Jordan Dobson: saxophone, background vocals

TINY DESK TEAM
Producer: Robin Hilton
Director/Editor: Maia Stern
Audio Technical Director: Josh Newell
Host/Series Producer: Bobby Carter
Videographers: Maia Stern, Joshua Bryant, Kara Frame, Sofia Seidel
Audio Engineer: Hannah Gluvna
Production Assistants: Dora Levite, Dhanika Pineda
Photographer: Michael Zamora
Series Editor: Lars Gotrich
Executive Producer: Suraya Mohamed
Executive Director: Sonali Mehta
Series Creators: Bob Boilen, Stephen Thompson, Robin Hilton

#nprmusic #tinydesk #davidbyrne

Support for NPR Music comes from Moises. A platform created by musicians, for musicians and used by 70 million artists worldwide – to learn, create, and collaborate. Available for download.