Beenie Man Takes Over NPR’s ‘Tiny Desk’

Running through classics like “Who Am I” and “Romie,” Beanie and the band highlighted his skills as a performer and their musical acumen as a collective. Beenie Man’s Tiny Desk appearance also comes on the heels of his work visa being reinstated after a 10-year ban.

The performance coincided with Beenie Man’s landmark album Art and Life turning twenty-five. The album is his best-selling in the U.S. and earned him a Grammy Award – while the Mya-featuring single “Girls Dem Sugar” became an international hit. When announcing the Tiny Desk appearance, Beanie Man acknowledged how much the platform means to him.

“Truly honoured to be part of this,” he wrote on social media. “Tiny Desk is a space where real music shines and mi ready fi represent.” His set follows fellow Jamaican NPR performances like Sean Paul, Koffee, Protoje, Sevana, Chronixx, Lila Ike, and Damian “Jr Gong” Marley.

NPR is celebrating classic albums’ major anniversaries with their Black Music Month celebration; in addition to Art and Life, Tiny Desk has recognized Keyshia Cole’s The Way It Is turning 20, E-40’s In a Major Way. Also among the albums getting honored are CeCe Winans’ Alone in His Presence, Wiz Khalifa’s Kush & Orange Juice and Living Colour’s Time’s Up.

“The idea of celebrating anniversaries came to me as I witnessed Chaka Khan deliver one of the most outstanding Tiny Desk concerts of all time last year,” said host and producer Bobby Carter in May. “These artists might not be the first you hear in the pop culture conversation, but they are crown jewels in Black culture.”

Running through classics like “Who Am I” and “Romie,” Beanie and the band highlighted his skills as a performer and their musical acumen as a collective. Beenie Man’s Tiny Desk appearance also comes on the heels of his work visa being reinstated after a 10-year ban.

The performance coincided with Beenie Man’s landmark album Art and Life turning twenty-five. The album is his best-selling in the U.S. and earned him a Grammy Award – while the Mya-featuring single “Girls Dem Sugar” became an international hit. When announcing the Tiny Desk appearance, Beanie Man acknowledged how much the platform means to him.

“Truly honoured to be part of this,” he wrote on social media. “Tiny Desk is a space where real music shines and mi ready fi represent.” His set follows fellow Jamaican NPR performances like Sean Paul, Koffee, Protoje, Sevana, Chronixx, Lila Ike, and Damian “Jr Gong” Marley.

NPR is celebrating classic albums’ major anniversaries with their Black Music Month celebration; in addition to Art and Life, Tiny Desk has recognized Keyshia Cole’s The Way It Is turning 20, E-40’s In a Major Way. Also among the albums getting honored are CeCe Winans’ Alone in His Presence, Wiz Khalifa’s Kush & Orange Juice and Living Colour’s Time’s Up.

“The idea of celebrating anniversaries came to me as I witnessed Chaka Khan deliver one of the most outstanding Tiny Desk concerts of all time last year,” said host and producer Bobby Carter in May. “These artists might not be the first you hear in the pop culture conversation, but they are crown jewels in Black culture.”