Bobby Carter | December 14, 2022
Westside Boogie's obscure declaration before the final song of his set indicated his detailed knowledge of Tiny Desk concerts. "I gotta be the first person to bring kids to NPR, right? No, I'm not," he exclaims. "I gotta be the first one with kids in costumes, though." He's correct. American Football brought a children's choir to the Desk in 2019, so Boogie added flair to that idea for the climactic end to his show. The "superheroes" accompanying him for "Silent Ride" are local Washington D.C. children representing the future. The vulnerable and solemn nature of this Compton poet's music required minimal adjustment to fit into our space.

"Oh My," the song that reeled us back to 2015, was atypical of what he does naturally in the booth. He finds comfort in laying bare vivid images of his personal life, much of which delves into his relationship struggles yet beams with self-awareness and self-criticism. The title of his latest project, More Black Superheroes, is in part dedicated to two recurring themes in his music: his neighborhood and his son. For his Tiny Desk, he played songs from that album , including "NONCHALANT," featuring former Tiny Desk Contest contestant Mamii and other highlights from his catalog. After the performance, in a full circle moment, Boogie signed a poster from our 2015 SXSW showcase, which he was part of, telling us it was his first paid show.

SET LIST
"N*** Needs"
"Lolsmh"
"STUCK"
"NONCHALANT"
"Silent Ride"

MUSICIANS
Westside Boogie: vocals
Mamii: vocals
Slimwav: keys, musical director
Andre Brown: bass
Marlon Allen: guitar
Jordan Hemby: drums
Monroe Grant: choir
Kamiya Washington: choir
Kamille Washington: choir
Donell Jones: choir
Jace Price: choir
Jordan Perkins: choir
Jaxon Staley: choir

TINY DESK TEAM
Producer: Bobby Carter
Director: Maia Stern
Audio Engineer: Josh Rogosin
Creative Director: Bob Boilen
Editor: Sofia Seidel
Videographers: Maia Stern, Beck Harlan, Sofia Seidel, Pierre Kattar
Audio Assistant: Kwesi Lee
Production Assistants: Jill Britton, Alanté Serene
Tiny Desk Team: Suraya Mohamed, Marissa Lorusso, Hazel Cills, Kara Frame, Joshua Bryant, Ashley Pointer, Teresa Xie
VP, Visuals and Music: Keith Jenkins
Senior VP, Programming: Anya Grundmann

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