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Samora Pinderhughes: Tiny Desk (Home) Concert

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.


The opening piano notes are barely sufficient warning to brace for the sweet and powerful voices that transport us to Samora Pinderhughes' Tiny Desk (home) concert, shot on film. "The Cry" heralds our journey into the Bay Area native's sophomore album, GRIEF. The vocalists move briefly out of frame for "Masculinity," a probing, open letter that addresses masculine stereotypes with directness and compassion. The song blooms beautifully, with Pinderhughes accompanied by strings, a background chorus, and his sister, renowned flutist Elena Pinderhughes.

Between tunes, Pinderhughes greets us and shares that the setting for this Tiny Desk (home) concert is his exhibition, "The Healing Project," at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco. Five years in the making, the project explores trauma and healing from structural violence with conversations, film, music and art created by incarcerated artists, including the artist Pitt Panther. Pinderhughes then plays "Holding Cell," a dedication to those behind the walls. For his next song, Pinderhughes leads us to a blue space, a memorial shrine with candles, offerings and dedications, where we encounter the haunted pleas of "Grief."

Pinderhughes' ability to be vulnerable makes his music incredibly intimate. He reminds us of this quiet strength once again as he introduces the last song in his set, "Process," with some final thoughts: "I think a lot of times we get a message that we should just succeed or triumph over something that's difficult in our life, particularly things like depression or grief or anxiety. But sometimes it's about living alongside those things and just taking it one day at a time."

SET LIST

  • "The Cry / Masculinity"
  • "Holding Cell"
  • "Grief"
  • "Process"
  • MUSICIANS

  • Samora Pinderhughes: vocals, piano, keyboard
  • Nio Levon: vocals, vocal arrangements
  • Elliott Skinner: vocals, guitar
  • Jehbreal Muhammad Jackson: vocals
  • Dani Murcia: vocals 
  • Elena Pinderhughes: flute
  • Clara Kim: violin
  • Giancarlo Latta: violin
  • Carly Scena: viola
  • Saul Richmond-Rakerd: cello
  • CREDITS

  • Director: Christian Padron 
  • Cinematographer: Jon Harrison
  • Audio Engineer: Jack DeBoe 
  • Producers: Christian Padron, Samora Pinderhughes, Jesse Sachs, Hana Mogulescu
  • Creative Direction: Samora Pinderhughes, & Christian Padron
  • Editor: Christian Padron
  • 1st AC: Linhdan Le
  • 2nd AC: Nam Anh Nguyen
  • Gaffer: Carlos Gonzalez
  • PD/Grip: Irene Peng
  • Shot on Kodak Film
  • Filmed in "The Healing Project" exhibition at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts
  • Visual Pieces in Exhibition by Samora Pinderhughes, Pitt Panther, Emeka Ekwelum, Josh Begley, Christian Padron, Vashni Korin, Daniel Pfeffer, Christopher Burch, Nico Cary, Eli Marienthal, Raquel Pinderhughes, Dwayne Betts and Titus Kaphar.
  • TINY DESK TEAM

  • Producer: Bob Boilen
  • Video Producer: Kara Frame, Joshua Bryant
  • Audio Mastering: Josh Rogosin
  • Tiny Production Team: Bobby Carter, Michael Zamora, Maia Stern, Ashley Pointer
  • Executive Producer: Keith Jenkins
  • Senior VP, Programming: Anya Grundmann
  • Copyright 2022 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

    Nikki Birch

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    SOMOS CONNECTICUT es una iniciativa de Connecticut Public, la emisora local de NPR y PBS del estado, que busca elevar nuestras historias latinas y expandir programación que alza y informa nuestras comunidades latinas locales. Visita CTPublic.org/latino para más reportajes y recursos. Para noticias, suscríbase a nuestro boletín informativo en ctpublic.org/newsletters.

    The independent journalism and non-commercial programming you rely on every day is in danger.

    If you’re reading this, you believe in trusted journalism and in learning without paywalls. You value access to educational content kids love and enriching cultural programming.

    Now all of that is at risk.

    Federal funding for public media is under threat and if it goes, the impact to our communities will be devastating.

    Together, we can defend it. It’s time to protect what matters.

    Your voice has protected public media before. Now, it’s needed again. Learn how you can protect the news and programming you depend on.

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