New singles, stories and more

November updates from the Contest community [View this email online]( [NPR Tiny Desk Contest]( November was another busy month for artists in the Contest community! Let’s dive in: Bob Boilen shared a new song from Semler, who was featured on [Top Shelf]( this year, on last week’s New Music Mix episode of [All Songs Considered](. Semler told Bob they wrote “Prodigal Girl,” an upbeat-sounding track about navigating faith as a queer person, in just 30 minutes. Also in [that episode]( songwriter Nick Carpenter, who entered the Contest in 2019 as Medium Build, called Bob from his tour (where he’s been performing with another Contest band, Oh He Dead) to talk about his song “Rabbit.” Nick told Bob the song is about “the things we wish we were and the things we know we never will be.” Zhalarina, who was featured on [Top Shelf]( last summer, recently [talked to Weekend Edition’s Scott Simon]( about the story behind her entry, “Lala.” Zhalarina describes the a capella rap song as “a love letter to her father,” who was incarcerated at the time she wrote it. Singer C.J. Johnson of Oh He Dead [also spoke to the folks at Weekend Edition]( about the story behind her band’s entry, “The Foreigner,” which Johnson wrote about newfound motherhood and love. Our friends at WBUR in Boston shared [their favorite Massachusetts entry to the 2021 Contest]( "Me" by HEESU. Musician Heesu Yu "takes her cues from K-pop and soul," WBUR's Amelia Mason writes. "[She] sings the verses in English, but the chorus in her native Korean." Also this month, our 2020 Contest winner, Linda Diaz, hosted another [episode of Sound Field from PBS](. In the video, she and her co-hosts break down how Auto-Tune works and explain how it has helped evolve popular music. Plus, Linda even creates a new song using Auto-Tune at the end of the episode. --------------------------------------------------------------- Newsletter continues after sponsor message --------------------------------------------------------------- Back when we were on tour with 2019 winner Quinn Christopherson, Quinn often played “Good Boy,” a cheeky unreleased track that quickly became a crowd favorite. So we were thrilled earlier this month when Quinn finally [released the track as a single](. “Sing along, vent, make up your own verses, let it out,” Quinn shared on Instagram. Our 2016 Contest winner, Gaelynn Lea, has also had a busy fall. It was [announced]( that Gaelynn will be writing original music for the [broadway adaptation of Shakespeare’s Macbeth]( starring Daniel Craig and Ruth Negga. Gaelynn also [spoke with the National Endowment for the Arts]( about her musical technique, the universality of disability culture and the book she’s writing. What have you been up to this month? We’d love to know. You can share with us by simply replying to this email. From our own tiny desks, NPR’s Tiny Desk Contest team P.S. A new Tiny Desk playlist just dropped: [Celebrating Native American Heritage Month](. --------------------------------------------------------------- Stream your local NPR station. Visit NPR.org to find your local station stream. [Find a Station]( --------------------------------------------------------------- [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Instagram]( What do you think of today's email? We'd love to hear your thoughts, questions and feedback: [tinydeskcontest@npr.org](mailto:tinydeskcontest@npr.org?subject=Newsletter%20Feedback) Interested in connecting with music-lovers and music-makers across the Contest community? Join our Tiny Desk Contest Community [Facebook Group]( Need a new playlist? Follow NPR Music on [Spotify]( and [Apple Music]( Looking for more great content? [Check out all of our newsletter offerings]( — including Music, Books, Pop Culture and more! You received this message because you're subscribed to Tiny Desk Contest emails. This email was sent by National Public Radio, Inc., 1111 North Capitol Street NE, Washington, DC 20002 [Unsubscribe]( | [Privacy Policy]( [NPR logo]