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NPR Music: Tiny Desk Concerts
Tiny Desk Concerts from NPR's All Songs Considered features your favorite musicians performing at Bob Boilen's desk in the NPR Music office. This is the AUDIO only archive.Are you a fancy A/V nerd and need video? Visit our new Tiny Desk Concert video channel. Eye-popping video and all of the music you've come to expect.

Valerie June: Tiny Desk Concert

By Bob Boilen
Published October 12, 2013 at 6:00 AM MDT

Short of seeing her live and in person, this is the best way to encounter Valerie June's heartfelt sound. Her new album Pushin' Against a Stoneis terrific, but when I first heard that voice unadorned, I was hooked. The same may happen to you.

Valerie June is a singular performer with an array of singing styles. Sometimes she's channeling an old male voice; at other times, she channels a younger woman or even a child. Her music is steeped in tradition. The striking Tennessee singer — on its own, her hair could pass for sculpture — can sing the blues or gospel or country or a blend that sounds like nothing else. She learned how to sing during 18 years of church, but the "old man's voice" comes from deep inside in unexpected ways. Prepare to be surprised, and to become Valerie June's newest fan.

Set List

  • "Workin' Woman Blues"

  • "Rain Dance"

  • "Somebody To Love"

    • Credits

    Producers: Bob Boilen, Denise DeBelius; Editor: Becky Harlan; Audio Engineer: Kevin Wait; Videographers: Parker Miles Blohm, Denise DeBelius

    Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

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    Tiny Desk Concerts
    Bob Boilen
    In 1988, a determined Bob Boilen started showing up on NPR's doorstep every day, looking for a way to contribute his skills in music and broadcasting to the network. His persistence paid off, and within a few weeks he was hired, on a temporary basis, to work for All Things Considered. Less than a year later, Boilen was directing the show and continued to do so for the next 18 years.
    See stories by Bob Boilen
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