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Tiny Desk Meets AFROPUNK: Luedji Luna

Tiny Desk Meets AFROPUNK was the opening event of AFROPUNK's "Black Spring" festival. The virtual celebration, hosted by Jorge "Gitoo" Wright, highlighted outstanding talent in Afro-Latin and Afro-Caribbean music across the globe. Our showcase featured four artists who honored their homes and celebrated the art their heritage has inspired.


"I feel that we are living in a crazy moment in a crazy time and music has been a safe place for me — the only safe place for me," Luedji Luna says in a low, alluring voice as she explains the purpose of her latest album, Bom Mesmo É Estar Debaixo D'Água. The album, much like the Brazilian singer-songwriters's Tiny Desk performance, is a respite from these times. Elements of jazz and blues are infused with African rhythms as Luna uses music to express her ongoing struggles for autonomy as a Black woman. She performs from her coastal hometown of Bahia in the city of Salvador, Brazil, where African culture flows in abundance. Luna is a powerhouse, entrancing and elegant, soulful and spiritual, as she uses her platform to discuss individual and systemic forms of anti-Blackness.

SET LIST

  • "Lençois"
  • "Erro"
  • "Chororô"
  • MUSICIANS

  • Luedji Luna: vocals
  • Weslei Rodrigo: bass
  • Sergio Machado: drums
  • Gabriel Gaiardo: keys
  • Vinicius Sampaio: guitar
  • CREDITS

  • Video: Flow Creative Core, Aline Juliet, Kadu Borges, Dilson Laguna
  • Audio: André Ramos
  • Scenographer: Juliana Laguna
  • Executive Producer: Gabriel Ramos
  • Assistant Producer: Reginaldo Vilela
  • TINY DESK TEAM

  • Producer: Abby O'Neill
  • Video Producer: Maia Stern
  • Audio Mastering: Josh Rogosin
  • Associate Producer: Bobby Carter
  • Tiny Production Team: Bob Boilen, Kara Frame
  • Executive Producer: Lauren Onkey
  • Senior VP, Programming: Anya Grundmann
  • Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

    LaTesha Harris is NPR Music's editorial assistant. A relentless jack-of-all-trades, she takes turns writing, editing and producing music coverage. Invested in the culture behind pop, hip-hop and R&B, her work highlights the intersection between identity and history. Once in a blue moon, Harris moonlights as a talking head with no filter.