Padma Lakshmi's 5 Favorite Tiny Desk Concerts

For Tiny Desk Playlists, we ask musicians, creators and folks we admire to choose the Tiny Desk concerts they've come to love. For this edition, food expert and television producer Padma Lakshmi picks her five favorites.

We've been fans of Padma since the early days of binging Top Chef while salivating. As the show embarks on its 18th season, Lakshmi is busy not only preparing to re-release her cookbook, Tangy Tart Hot and Sweet, but she's publishing a children's book this summer as well. We were thrilled to see her share a favorite Tiny Desk moment on her Instagram and we wanted to find out what other shows she's been enjoying lately. —Maia Stern

• Lizzo

This is fantastic. You can see the enormity of her talent and voice, as well as her wicked sense of humor. I got to see her live in Brooklyn and she was equally incredible.

• Rokia Traoré

I have no idea what she is singing, but her voice is so piercing and spiritually moving — it haunts you. Finding music like this is such a treasure and this series (Tiny Desk meets globalFEST) is a beautiful way to discover global artists that you might not otherwise be exposed to.

• Jamila Woods

The first time I saw Jamila Woods perform live was at the Black Girl Magic Poetry Ball. She's a stunning artist who sings like an angel. I think what most people don't know about her is that she's actually a brilliant poet as well.

• H.E.R.

I just love the rawness of this song ["Hard Place"]. It really got under my skin. Her voice is so melodic, but underneath there's a sense of yearning to it. She reminds me of Lauryn Hill.

• Billie Eilish

This performance lets you hear the nuances of her voice that you might miss in her up-tempo songs. Here you can see how insane her range is. Perfect for listening to when you're laying down in the dark by yourself.

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