The Tiny Desk is working from home for the foreseeable future. Introducing NPR Music's Tiny Desk (home) concerts, bringing you performances from across the country and the world. It's the same spirit — stripped-down sets, an intimate setting — just a different space.


From Hilltop Coffee + Kitchen in Inglewood, California, our second and final Insecure Tiny Desk takeover is a total Los Angeles affair. The spot where B.K. Habermehl, Nnena, and TeaMarrr gather is also co-owned by series creator and star, Issa Rae. Our first collaboration with Insecure was an experiment just a few weeks into the Tiny Desk (home) experiment last year. We took what we learned and decided to run it back. Hilltop was featured on the show and the addition of L.A.'s own 1500 or Nothin' as the backing band made the refinement complete.

Southern California's B.K. Habermehl is no stranger to Issa Rae's world. She landed three songs on season four of the HBO show, including the jam that introduced me to her, "Right on Time." Here she kicks off the showcase with "Time Off." Next, B.K. takes us downstairs to usher in some "Fun" via newcomer Nnena. "Fun" was featured at the end of the first episode of Insecure's current season, and completely set the tone for the episodes that followed. The Nigerian-American singer-rapper dives deep into her low range and the result gives me goosebumps. We cap things off with a tea party, courtesy of Insecure fav TeaMarrr. Waving an incense stick, she conjures some seductive "Pipe Dreams."

SET LIST

  • "Time Off"
  • "Fun"
  • "Pipe Dreams"

MUSICIANS

  • B.K. Habermehl: vocals
  • Nnena: vocals
  • TeaMarrr: vocals
  • Damien "Dammo" Farmer: bass
  • Quintin "Q" Gulledge: drums
  • Lamar "MyGuyMars" Edwards: keys
  • Chris Payton: guitar
  • Allen "Bizkit" Arthur: saxophone
  • Larrance "Rance" Dopson: music director

CREDITS

  • Video: Lia B
  • Audio: Cole Nystrom
  • Director: Lia B
  • Engineer: Cole Nystrom
  • Executive Producers: Joseph Boyd and Brittany Bell
  • Director of Photography: Evan Avtal
  • Steadicam: Thor
  • Camera Operators: Benjamin Meserve, Taylor Randall
  • Gaffer: Jahn Beadle
  • Lead Production Assistant: Sofia Ribeiro
  • Editor: Wayan Palmieri

TINY DESK TEAM

  • Producer: Bobby Carter
  • Video Producer: Maia Stern
  • Audio Mastering: Josh Rogosin
  • Tiny Production Team: Bob Boilen, Kara Frame, Joshua Bryant, Sofie Hernandez-Simeonidis
  • Executive Producer: Keith Jenkins
  • Senior VP, Programming: Anya Grundmann
Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

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