David Byrne: Tiny Desk Concert

David Byrne: Tiny Desk Concert with tags npr, npr music, national public radio, live, performance, tiny desk, tiny desk concert, tony desk, tiny concert

Robin Hilton | December 1, 2025

David Byrne has a long history of staging elaborate live shows, often with a sprawling cast of musicians, highly choreographed dancing and unusual instrumentation. So when we learned he wanted to have more than a dozen performers at the Tiny Desk, playing everything from cello, saxophone and marimba to a Brazilian timbau and zabumba (not to mention various guitars and keys), we weren't sure we'd be able to fit it all in.

It turns out his latest tour, for the album Who Is The Sky?, is well designed for our roughly 10 by 11-foot space. Though Byrne and his band do normally spread out across large stages, the set design for each show is almost completely bare, without any cables or amps, and the artists wear or carry compact, custom-made instruments to make it easier to move, almost like a marching band.

It's cozy, but Byrne and his band, in matching, brilliant blue suits, squeeze behind the Desk to perform four songs, opening with the euphoric "Everybody Laughs," followed by "Don't Be Like That," both from his new album. They also perform two Talking Heads songs: "(Nothing But) Flowers," from the 1988 album Naked, and a show-stopping version of "Life During Wartime," from 1979's Fear of Music.

It was a bucket-list performance for the Tiny Desk. Afterward, as the rest of the band and crew dispersed, Byrne hopped on a rented bike for a solo ride through the District on a beautiful, fall afternoon.

SET LIST

"Everybody Laughs"

"Don't Be Like That"

"(Nothing But) Flowers"

"Life During Wartime"

MUSICIANS

David Byrne: vocals, guitar

Mauro Refosco: percussion, music director

Ray Suen: guitar, bass, violin, music director

Kely Pinheiro: bass, cello

Daniel Mintseris: keys

Stephane San Juan: drums

Tim Keiper: percussion

Yuri Yamashita: percussion, marimba

Tendayi Kuumba: background vocals

Sasha Rivero: background vocals

Hannah Straney: background vocals

Sean Donovan: background vocals

Jordan Dobson: saxophone, background vocals

TINY DESK TEAM

Producer: Robin Hilton

Director/Editor: Maia Stern

Audio Technical Director: Josh Newell

Host/Series Producer: Bobby Carter

Videographers: Maia Stern, Joshua Bryant, Kara Frame, Sofia Seidel

Audio Engineer: Hannah Gluvna

Production Assistants: Dora Levite, Dhanika Pineda

Photographer: Michael Zamora

Series Editor: Lars Gotrich

Executive Producer: Suraya Mohamed

Executive Director: Sonali Mehta

Series Creators: Bob Boilen, Stephen Thompson, Robin Hilton

#nprmusic #tinydesk #davidbyrne

Support for NPR Music comes from Moises. A platform created by musicians, for musicians and used by 70 million artists worldwide – to learn, create, and collaborate. Available for download.