NEWS
The NPR Tiny Desk has served as a unqiue stage for many rappers and singers to show off their skills. Artists like Tyler, The Creator, Mac Miller, and Anderson .Paak have all made memorable appearances behind the titular desk. There's been an extremely impressive roster of bands and artists to play behind the desk over the years. During the COVID-19 pandemic they even creatively shifted the series to memorable at-home additions from artists like Young Thug and Clipping. Now, R&B darling Willow is the latest to take the iconic stage.
For her performance she dipped back into her discography and delivered a career-spanning set. She played a trio of songs set to land on her upcoming album including "Symptom Of Life," "Run," and "Big Feelings." In between, she dipped into her 2022 album COPINGMECHANISM for the song "Split." After that she went all the way back to her 2015 debut album ARDIPITHECUS for a special performance of the fan-favorite "Wait A Minute." She did it all with the help of a lively four piece band. The video is already racking up hundreds of thousands of views and is currently trending on YouTube.
Willow is gearing up to release a new album later this year. "symptom of life" isn't the only song she's shared from the project so far. Last year she dropped "alone" back in November which has racked up more than 3 million streams on Spotify. Just last month she dropped "b i g f e e l i n g s" which is well on its way to matching those numbers with nearly 1.5 million streams in less than a month.
2023 was the first year since 2018 that Willow didn't drop a new studio album following three solo releases and her collaborative project THE ANXIETY. What do you think of Willow's newly released Tiny Desk Concert? Did you expect her to pull songs from so far back in her discography to perform? Let us know in the comment section below.
NEWS
DXCLUSIVE - Rapsody has said that she was inspired by many different artists, but Lil Wayne recently gave her the impetus to be at her best in the booth.
The legendary MC sat down with HipHopDX on Friday (May 17), where she revealed how the ex-Hot Boy got her creative juices flowing.
“I just wanna say what I say and make it fun,” she said at the 29:00 mark. “But then, he sent his verse, and I was like, ‘I gotta match the level of artistry.’ Like, it’s Wayne!”
She continued: “And I ain’t scared to say it, because he’s one of the GOATs. It is what it is. A lot of artists won’t say it. But I’ll say it: I probably wrote my verse like 27 times.”
“May 17th, Please Don’t Cry. My fourth studio album,” she wrote on Instagram.
Rapsody then offered a hint at the album’s concept, describing the journey of self-discovery and self-acceptance that she has embarked on since her last full-length release.
“The last four years have been a beautiful, challenging, exciting, scary, journey back to self,” she said. “A becoming. A reintroduction. An unveiling. An unlearning. A knowing. An unplugging. A welcome home. A reality check.
“A love story with the reflection in the mirror. And I love her. She’s raw. Imperfect. Real. Goofy. Intelligent. Cool as a cucumber. Patient. Kind. Mad. Emotional. Funny. Quiet. Swear she gangsta. Thoughtful. Grateful. Forgetful. Overwhelmed.”
She added: “Once a month she got an attitude. She cares deeply. Sometimes too much. She’s a lot of things. She’s complex. But, I think that’s what makes her special. And I can’t wait for you to get to know her. Love [kiss emoji] The Homegirl.”
The album’s tracklist (which can be seen in full at the bottom of this page) reveals collaborations with Lil Wayne, Erykah Badu, Hit-Boy, Baby Tate and Alex Isley, among others, across 22 songs.
The album is Rapsody’s first album in five years.
