A Week Of Special Tiny Desks Celebrating Hispanic Heritage

Plus, New York Philharmonic cancellations; how the Philly jazz community is responding to the pandemic.

by Marissa Lorusso and Lyndsey McKenna NPR This week marks the end of National Hispanic Heritage Month, and NPR Music celebrated the best way we know how: with an abundance of Tiny Desk (home) concerts, recorded especially for this week. We kicked things off with a performance by Lido Pimienta, whose album Miss Colombia is one of the Alt.Latino team’s favorite records of the year. It’s a visually stunning and poignant (home) concert; the video’s visual theme is a quinceañera, a coming of age tradition that Pimienta could not share with her mother, who had to flee Colombia. Next, Colombian actor and singer Carlos Vives brought his signature blend of Colombian music, rock and other Latin music styles. We appreciate that he recreated a little of the Tiny Desk magic by placing an item on his own desk that we often see on the actual Tiny Desk — an NPR mug. Then, vocalist Bebel Gilberto reminded us why she’s now a standard bearer of Brazilian music and gave us a spectacular view of speed boats gliding across the lagoon in Rio de Janeiro in her Tiny Desk (home) concert. We closed out the celebration with one of the most watched and listened-to artists on earth: Ozuna. The Puerto Rican singer’s (home) concert is a refreshingly intimate love letter to the communities that supported him on his global rise. Marissa Lorusso Newsletter continues after sponsor message New Music This week in All Songs Considered’s New Mix: new music from the band that made two of Bob Boilen’s favorite albums from the 2010s, plus fiercely brilliant new music from Mdou Moctar. And on New Music Friday, we discuss the latest installment of Black Thought’s Streams of Thought trilogy, the debut solo album from The National’s Matt Berninger, the highly anticipated debut album from Beabadoobee and more. Demi Lovato performed "Commander In Chief," her politically-charged single criticizing President Trump, for the first time at this week’s Billboard Music Awards. During Lovato's pre-recorded performance, the word “VOTE” appeared in large letters behind her; NBC reportedly edited the word from its broadcast.   This week, our friends at WFUV shared a video of Sylvan Esso performing “Ferris Wheel” live from the duo’s home. Featuring This week, we launched a new series of interviews with visionary Black musicians. Amplify, hosted by pianist and artist Lara Downes, will feature open-hearted conversations reflecting on how artists are responding and creating in this time of profound challenge and change. The first episode includes a conversation with Rhiannon Giddens. How is the jazz community in Philadelphia responding to the global pandemic? In a new video short, Jazz Night in America showcases some creative approaches to socially distanced live performance. This week, the New York Philharmonic canceled all of its scheduled concerts through June 13, 2021, marking the first time in the orchestra's 178-year history that it has canceled an entire season. Shortlisted for Canada’s top prize for independent musicians, the artist Backxwash confounds racialized stereotypes surrounding the preferences of young, Black listeners. Her album God Has Nothing to Do With It Leave Him Out of It combines hip-hop, metal and a spirit of hard-won empathy. In Boston, many up-and-coming rappers say traditional venues are reluctant to book local talent. It’s forced the city's best rappers to find alternate spaces, and in the process, has created a tight-knit DIY hip-hop community. Louder Than A Riot This week, Louder Than A Riot shared the second episode in its series about rapper Mac Phipps, who has been incarcerated for the past 20 years for a murder he claims he didn’t commit. During the trial, prosecutors introduced Phipps’ lyrics as evidence against him, prompting the podcast to ask: What right does the justice system have to decide whether a rapper's words are imagination or intent to kill? One More Thing “When the rain washes you clean, you'll know…” What do you think of today's email? We'd love to hear your thoughts, questions and feedback: nprmusic@npr.org Enjoying this newsletter? Forward to a friend! They can sign up here. Looking for more great content? Check out all of our newsletter offerings — including Books, Pop Culture, Health and more! Need a new playlist? Follow NPR Music on Spotify and Apple Music! You received this message because you're subscribed to NPR Music emails. This email was sent by National Public Radio, Inc., 1111 North Capitol Street NE, Washington, DC 20002 Unsubscribe  |  Privacy Policy