For the third year, Tiny Desk concerts team up with globalFEST for a thrilling online music festival — Tiny Desk meets globalFEST.
Hosted by Angélique Kidjo, the series echoes globalFEST's live flagship event in spirit but is centered in the framework of the Tiny Desk concert series. This collaboration presents exclusive video performances from nine artists filmed in their respective homelands, on the road and in exile all over the world. There will be three nights of concerts, each featuring three bands, on consecutive nights beginning Tuesday, Jan. 24 at 8 p.m. ET. The globalFEST team wrote the following biographical information about each performer.
Septeto Santiaguero, Cuba
Septeto Santiaguero was founded in 1995 by members of Melodías de Ayer, a group formed in the early 1960s, together with the Estudiantina Invasora and the Cuarteto Patria, had for over three decades animated many a day and night at the Casa de la Trova in Santiago de Cuba. In 1993 and 1994, a number of young musicians from other septets — such as Sones de Oriente and Septeto Luz — joined Melodías de Ayer, and Fernando Dewar, a tres player, took over the leadership of the group. Seeking to return to their roots, the group decided to give up the mambos and stick to the discipline of the traditional septet: guitar, tres, bongo, clave, maracas, acoustic bass and trumpet, with the addition of the drum, which it retained in honor of Arsenio Rodríguez. In the Santiago de Cuba style, the two singers maintain the first and second harmony with equal emphasis. The group preserves and pays homage to one of Cuba's most important musical forms, with a vitality demonstrating that the septeto tradition is still fresh and alive in Santiago de Cuba today.
SET LIST
MUSICIANS
CREDITS
Bia Ferreira, Brazil
Bia Ferreira is a Brazilian singer, composer, multi-instrumentalist and activist. Her music, which she defines as "MMP — Música de Mulher Preta," discusses topics such as feminism, anti-racism and homophobia. She makes music that harnesses a combination of funky beats, reggae and soulful ballad grooves while lyrically pushing her listeners toward the discomfort that generates "movemente," or action. Her lyrics have been described as "escrevivência," a term Conceição Evaristo uses to "tell our stories from our perspectives." It represents the subjectivity of a Black woman in Brazilian society.
SET LIST
MUSICIANS
CREDITS
Moonlight Benjamin, Haiti / France
Moonlight Benjamin describes her music as a blend of vodou and rock and roll. Born in Haiti and living in France, she is both a vodou priestess and a powerful singer-songwriter with an impressive vocal range. Benjamin's sounds are both thrilling and thoughtful.
SET LIST
MUSICIANS
CREDITS
TINY DESK TEAM
GLOBALFEST TEAM
FUNDERS:
SPECIAL THANKS:
Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.
