This Black Music Month, Tiny Desk is giving the ladies their flowers. We鈥檙e releasing nine Tiny Desk concerts from Black women artists, from veterans who鈥檝e paved the way for what we hear today in Black music, to those who are carving out their own paths.
To hear tell the audience that she was shy came as a surprise to me. As a performer, she captivates us with such ease and exudes confidence when she鈥檚 not, so to see her blushing as the crowd roared was sweet to witness. Unlike most artists who鈥檝e performed at the Desk, the Nigerian singer-songwriter took a chance by playing a set filled with songs from her forthcoming debut album, Born in the Wild.
A lot has happened in Tems鈥� world since her a couple of years ago. She鈥檚 won dozens of awards, including a Grammy, worked with and written for , all of which helped to keep her name on our minds and music in the clubs. These new songs indicate time well spent between her breakout moment a few years ago and now. 鈥淯苍蹿辞谤迟耻苍补迟别鈥� is less Afrobeats and more straightforward R&B, flexing her development as a writer. 鈥淔辞谤别惫别谤鈥� is powerful in the way she reaches a vocal range I had no idea she could, while 鈥淟ove Me JeJe鈥� was the hands-down standout. At the time of the taping, the song had yet to be released, but the rhythm pierced the room and had us all in line for the call and response.
SET LIST
- 鈥淢e & U鈥�
- 鈥淚ce T鈥�
- 鈥淯苍蹿辞谤迟耻苍补迟别鈥�
- 鈥淔辞谤别惫别谤鈥�
- 鈥淟ove Me JeJe鈥�
MUSICIANS
- Tems: lead vocals
- Daniel Crawford: keys, music direction
- Brett Baker: percussion
- Erick Walls: guitar
- Eric Ingram: bass
- Robert Johnson: drums
- Olivia Williams: vocals
- Ashly Williams: vocals
- Kadeem Nichols: vocals
TINY DESK TEAM
- Producer: Bobby Carter
- Director/Editor: Kara Frame
- Audio Technical Director: Josephine Nyounai
- Videographers: Kara Frame, Joshua Bryant, Alant茅 Serene, Mitra I. Arthur
- Audio Engineer: Neil Tevault
- Production Assistant: Ashley Pointer
- Photographer: Estefania Mitre
- Animation: Jackie Lay
- Florist: Kelanda Edwards
- Tiny Desk Team: Maia Stern, Hazel Cills
- Executive Producer: Suraya Mohamed
- Series Creators: Bob Boilen, Stephen Thompson
- VP, Visuals and Music: Keith Jenkins
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