NPR Music's Tiny Desk series will celebrate Black History Month with Tiny Desk (home) concerts featuring legends in the world of R&B, jazz, gospel, and hip-hop. Each artist in this legacy lineup has helped to define Black music as we know it and will be performing a Tiny Desk concert for the first time.

LaTesha Harris | February 17, 2022
In his Tiny Desk (home) concert, Too $hort asks: "How many artists you know that got relevant records in five decades?" The Oakland rapper answers by performing seven songs from his own discography, showcasing his extensive (yet still underrated) contributions to the growth of hip-hop on the West Coast. The expedition opens on a quiet, reflective note with a performance of $hort's influential 1990 single "The Ghetto" before roaring to life with 1988's "Life Is... Too $hort." From his spot in downtown LA, BoomBox Studios, $hort delivers a dynamic, funk-laden performance, seamlessly cycling through scenes of women-chasing debauchery and politically-minded meditation.

Of course, Too $hort's set list shows off the development of his sound, but it also underscores hip-hop's evolution from a socially polarizing genre to a touchstone of cultural capital. Combined with an enthralling presence of persona, $hort's jaw-dropping lyrics and minimal delivery influenced West Coast peers, like Snoop Dogg and Lil B, and beyond, like Lil Jon and UGK; his career, one of moving cassettes with local independent success to moving multiple platinum albums with national acclaim, established the Bay Area as a credible rapping hotspot, pushing the boundaries of hip-hop. Too $hort honors this history by shouting out his many collaborators over the years and sharing his legacy as a hip-hop titan with a spirited group of musicians – notably Curtis Crump Jr. and Techdizzle who steal the show with, respectively, their sax and drum work on "Gettin' It" and "Blow The Whistle." It's a monumental moment for the Tiny Desk, and for those wondering, there's more than enough of Too $hort's favorite word to celebrate with.

SET LIST
"The Ghetto"
"Life Is ...Too $hort"
"Gettin' It"
"Blow the Whistle"
"Ain't My Girlfriend"
"Big Sexy Thang"
"Big Subwoofer"

MUSICIANS
Too $hort: vocals
Robert L. Mitchell "Techdizzle": music director / drums
Curtis Crump Jr.: keys
Frank Abraham: bass
Ash Jangda: guitar
Maurice Smith: vocals

CREDITS
Recording Engineer: Migui Maloles
Monitor Engineer: Mateo Rodriguez
Mixing Engineer: Zach "Ekzakt" Perry
Directed By: Patrick "Embryo" Tapu
Camera Operator: Bryan Ramos and Robert Teegarden
Editor: Bryan Ramos
Coloring: Bryan Ramos
Gaffer: Mike Nelli
Grip: Jeremy Kemp

TINY DESK TEAM
Producer: Abby O'Neill
Video Producer: Joshua Bryant
Audio Mastering: Josh Rogosin
Tiny Production Team: Bobby Carter, Kara Frame, Maia Stern, Ashley Pointer, Sofie Hernandez-Simeonidis
Executive Producer: Keith Jenkins
Senior VP, Programming: Anya Grundmann

#too$hort #tooshort #nprmusic #tinydesk #bhmxnprmusic

NPR Music's Tiny Desk series will celebrate Black History Month with Tiny Desk (home) concerts featuring legends in the world of R&B, jazz, gospel, and hip-hop. Each artist in this legacy lineup has helped to define Black music as we know it and will be performing a Tiny Desk concert for the first time.

Bobby Carter | February 23, 2022
The first song in Patti LaBelle's Tiny Desk (home) concert sets the tone and quickly sums up the entire 15-minute performance. "Something Special (Is Gonna Happen Tonight)" from her 1986 album Winner In You is a highlight from one of many chapters in her fabulous career. A backstage corner of a concert hall in Austin, Texas, is transformed into Patti's world, furnished with a throne, flowers and trunks full of shoes. Options are a must, given a knack for kicking off her shoes during shows. The entire band managed to fit onto the set: thirteen people, including fierce background vocals, keys, horns and more, to recreate some of the best from the Godmother of Soul.

LaBelle and company go straight into hits mode after the first number. "Love, Need and Want You" is delivered with the same vibrancy as the 1983 original, with a wink to another hit, "Dilemma," by Nelly, who sampled it 19 years later. The ballads continue with "If Only You Knew." She closes with the anthem "Lady Marmalade," which was also revived in the early 2000s by Christina Aguilera, Mya, Pink and Lil' Kim.

Ms. Patti had already made Black History with Cindy Birdsong, Sara Dash and Nona Hendryx as the powerhouse group Patti LaBelle and the Bluebelles (later Labelle). After the group disbanded, she forged through on her own as a pioneer in music, style and entrepreneurship. Sixty years and counting. Whether big stage or Tiny Desk, the standard-bearing icon continues to exude elegance and grace as a performer.

SET LIST
"Something Special (Is Gonna Happen Tonight)"
"Love, Need and Want You"
"If Only You Knew"
"Lady Marmalade"

MUSICIANS
Patti LaBelle: vocals
Stan Lewis: keys/music director
Danny Nixon: keys
Daryl Robertson: keys
Eric Seats: drums
Alex Evans: bass
Eric Dubose: guitar
Jeff Bradshaw: trombone
Melvin Jones: trumpet
Michael Burton: saxophone
Debra Henry Ramsey: vocals
Brenda Roy: Background vocals
Anthony Williams Jr: vocals
Aja Marie Grant: vocals

CREDITS
Video Director: Whitney Thomas
Audio Engineer: Dwayne Jones
Recording Engineer: Brandon Snell
Management: Zuri Edwards
Production Manager: Joe Falcon
Road Manager: Pamela Hobson
Guitar Tech: Alfonso Perez
Backline Tech: Gabriel Santana Falcon, GearHeadz Inc.
Technical Director: Blake Addyson

TINY DESK TEAM
Producer: Bobby Carter
Video Producer: Joshua Bryant
Audio Mastering: Josh Rogosin
Tiny Production Team: Bob Boilen, Kara Frame, Maia Stern, Ashley Pointer, Sofie Hernandez-Simeonidis
Executive Producer: Keith Jenkins
Senior VP, Programming: Anya Grundmann

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