NPR’s own Ashley Pointer shows up for her home-state hero; plus, the Tiny Desk Contest deadline is here and more.
Zayrha Rodriguez/NPR
Jay “Jeezy” Jenkins is more than just a superstar rapper with a decades-long pedigree; he’s also an entrepreneur and New York Times bestselling author. So it’s no surprise that Jeezy channeled his considerable ambitions into his Tiny Desk debut. The Atlanta trap star enlisted bassist D. Hodge (who’d previously performed a Tiny Desk with Common at the White House) to assemble a band that could bring out a fresh side of his catalog. That meant, among other things, putting together string players who included two decidedly different kinds of Tiny Desk veterans: violist Lelia-Michelle Walker, who played as part of Mac Miller’s classic 2018 set, and violinist Ashley Pointer, who’s been an indispensable producer on the Tiny Desk team since 2022.
It’s no secret or surprise that our team includes a fair number of active musicians, and Ashley isn’t the first NPR staffer to take a turn as a guest Tiny Desk performer: The great and good Alt.Latino co-host Felix Contreras is an accomplished conguero, as well as a frequent producer of Tiny Desk concerts, so it’s been no surprise to see him pop up as a supporting player with Arturo O’Farrilland others. Though I don’t recall him ever performing at the Tiny Desk as a (surprisingly good!) musician, Bob Boilen has turned up in front of the cameras as, among other things, a glorified prop for the Sesame Street Tiny Desk. Still, it was marvelous for those of us who’ve worked with Ashley to see her — a wonderful, steadying presence behind the scenes — as she elicited praise from someone so crucial to her own musical journey.
Hearing early-2000s Southern trap music at a young age made Ashley want to play music, and she picked up the violin at age 5. When asked to reflect on the moment, Ashley offered this:
“Born and raised in Macon, Ga., I was 6 when Jeezy dropped Thug Motivation 101, and it shook up the hood,” Ashley wrote when asked to reflect on her Tiny Desk moment. “Going from making moves behind the Tiny Desk as a producer to being called to rock out in front of the cameras with one of my musical heroes — and as part of an all-Black string quartet during Black History Month, at that! — is incredibly surreal. Truthfully, I’m still processing.
“Playing in that little corner is an experience like none other — no bells and whistles, just music and energy,” she continued. “It was one of the most exhilarating moments of my life, and nothing short of divine orchestration. Totally worth taking off that day!”
It should tell you a little something about Ashley’s work ethic that she considers her experience — stepping up to become a part of documented music history — to be taking a day off work. For me, a day off work involves far more time catching up on Couple to Throuple from my couch.
Anyway, it’s a lush and glorious performance that enriches and expands Jeezy’s sound. Don’t miss it.
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Tiny Desk Contest last call
Today is the last day to submit an entry in our 10th annual Tiny Desk Contest, and I’m here to tell you that submissions have been pouring in at an incredible clip. If you’re a musician who’s been thinking about entering, consider this your final notice to send us a video! The deadline is 11:59 ET tonight, February 21.
Estefania Mitre/NPR
Recent Tiny Desks
A free jazz band with roots in the ethos of punk, Irreversible Entanglements — which includes Camae Ayewa of the radical and groundbreaking project Moor Mother — whipped through six songs without a break.
Cinder Well’s Amelia Baker grew up in California, but now spends her time on the Western cliffs of Ireland. At the Tiny Desk, her music split the difference between the two locales that shaped her life.
The genre-smashing pop and R&B star Tinashe showed up the day of a D.C. snowstorm, then fired us up with a show that demonstrated her famous versatility.
The Atlanta singer Berhana paid homage to his roots with the help of Ethiopian jazz pianist Kibrom Birhane and members of the Ethio Cali band.
Around public radio
It’s not often that a U.S. public radio station has the opportunity to host a Dutch-Turkish psychedelic rock band, but Seattle’s KEXP always makes sure to record Altin Gün when the group plays stateside.
WMOT in Nashville is still rolling out its AmericanaFest 2023 videos, and the latest upload is from Carolina Chocolate Drops’ Dom Flemons, who never fails to charm.
WNRN in Charlottesville captured a live performance of one NPR’s best songs of 2023: Sunny War’s “Whole.”
Speaking of WNRN, their studio session archive has a stunning version of Superchunk’s “Driveway to Driveway,” an incredible song that somehow turns 30 years old in April.
The Magnetic Fields are celebrating the 25th anniversary of 69 Love Songs this year with an international tour, so hopefully we’ll get more studio sessions like one, in which Stephin Merritt performs “The Book of Love” for New York City’s WFUV.
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