Every January, I attend globalFEST at a New York City nightclub and see some of the most fantastic music I'll experience all year. Now, given the pandemic's challenges and the hardening of international borders, NPR Music and globalFEST moved the 2021 edition from the nightclub to your screen of choice and shared the festival with the world. We called it Tiny Desk Meets globalFEST. We presented 16 artists in intimate settings (often behind desks donning globes), all hosted by African superstar Angélique Kidjo. Rokia Traoré performed at globalFEST in 2005, the music festival's second year, and it's a thrill to present her meditative performance as part of Tiny Desk meets globalFEST. Her work is rooted in the Malian musical tradition, but defies the confines of a single culture. Born in Mali to a diplomat father, Traoré had a nomadic upbringing that exposed her to a wide variety of international musical influences. She joins us from Blues Faso, a theater inside her Foundation Passerelle in Mali, which she created to support emerging, interdisciplinary artists, from music and the performing arts to visual arts and photography. SET LIST "Qanniuguma" "Wolves Don't Live by the Rules" "Arnaq" MUSICIANS Elisapie: vocals Jean-Sébastien Williams: guitar Joshua Toal: bass Jason Sharp: saxophone Robbie Kuster: drums CREDITS Producer: Edwin Perez Video: Francis Maheu, Dominic Boudreau Audio: Alexandre Fallu, Pierre Girard Production Coordinator: Sophie Bernier-Blanchette Artistic Director, Lights: Julie Basse Tiny Desk Meets globalFEST TINY DESK TEAM Producer: Bob Boilen Video Producer: Morgan Noelle Smith Audio Mastering: Josh Rogosin Associate Producer: Bobby Carter Tiny Production Team: Kara Frame, Maia Stern Executive Producer: Lauren Onkey Senior VP, Programming: Anya Grundmann GLOBALFEST TEAM Co-Directors: Shanta Thake, Isabel Soffer, and Bill Bragin 2021 Curators: Shanta Thake, Isabel Soffer, Bill Bragin, and Viviana Benitez Event Producer: Ian Thake Host: Angélique Kidjo Social Media Manager: Valerie French Publicity: Brendan Gilmartin, Chart Room Media Legal Services: Tamizdat Legal Services: Duane Morris Producer: THE OFFICE performing arts + film Video Production: MODEMA Studios

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