Sampha: NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert

Bobby Carter | March 21, 2017 — "There¬hing new under the sun / It&never what you do, but how it&done," Nas rapped on "No Idea&Original." Such is the case with the South London singer, songwriter and producer Sampha. His originality lies in delivery and tone, which is why he&been summoned by some of hip-hop and R&B&biggest names years before the release of his first album. (Kanye&"Saint Pablo" and Drake&"Too Much," for example, could have lacked emotional value without Sampha&contributions.) Sampha&music is more feel everything than feel good, which is why his fans hold him so close to their hearts. The vulnerability on his debut, Process, isn&hard to dissect, but can be downright agonizing to digest; his immediate family has been riddled with disease and ailments, with both his parents succumbing to cancer. Process finds Sampha interpreting this complicated emotional prism — and confronting his own mortality through it. Sampha stopped by the NPR offices to perform 3 tracks from Process. The result is a Tiny Desk Concert as intimate as it gets (and that&saying something). It&just him, a piano and these heart-wrenching songs that we reckon double as coping mechanisms. Process is available now: Set List "Plastic 100°C" "(No One Knows Me) Like the Piano" "Blood On Me" Musicians Sampha (vocals, keys) Credits Producers: Bob Boilen, Bobby Carter, Niki Walker; Audio Engineer: Josh Rogosin; Videographers: Niki Walker, Morgan Noelle Smith; Editor: Morgan Noelle Smith...