PJ Sin Suela: Tiny Desk Concert

PJ Sin Suela: Tiny Desk Concert with tags npr, npr music, national public radio, live, performance, tiny desk, tiny desk concert, tony desk, tiny concert

Anamaria Sayre | May 1, 2025

There’s no falsifying the kind of joy PJ Sin Suela exudes — it’s infectiousness, magnetic and consistent. From San Juan to the Tiny Desk, it’s hard to catch a moment where the Puerto Rican rapper, doctor and author doesn’t smile, laugh or perreo hasta abajo. This performance, the perfect space for the world to see a true PJ, is no exception.

On songs like “TOP” and “Amor Artificial,” he waxes about love in buoyant and silly ways — “por ti, Darwin estudio la evolución (for you, Darwin studied evolution),” goes one line. But like many Puerto Rican artists in love with their island home, PJ’s sonic landscape features mountains of lightness built on a past and present pain. “Mambrú,” which closes out this set, tells the story of a young Puerto Rican man who joins the U.S. Army, ships off to fight “under a flag that doesn’t fill him up” and doesn’t return home the same.

The key, for PJ Sin Suela, is to keep home close. At the Tiny Desk, Puerto Rican flags wave proudly and there are protest stickers everywhere that highlight issues near and dear to his heart. There’s no inch of PJ Sin Suela or his art that isn’t focused on the needs of his people. But the island’s challenges, in his world, go hand in hand with hometown pride, summed up on “Duolingo”: “Everybody be like, ‘Damn boy, where you from? Illinois?’ / No bitch, Puerto Rico de donde salen tus artistas favoritos (where all your favorite artists come from).”

SET LIST

“Tengo Una Nota”

“Duolingo”

“Mírame”

“Amor Artificial”

“TOP”

“Mambrú”

MUSICIANS

PJ Sin Suela: vocals

Kalani Trinidad: flute, keys, talk box

Barba Blanca: keys

Jahaziel Garcia: trumpet

Janice Maisonet: tenor saxophone

Benson Pagán: guitar

Messy Deprat: bass

David B.: drums

Gabo Lugo: percussion

Rafita: hypeman

Yeidimar Ramos: background vocals

Universónica: background vocals

Alexssa Hernández: sign language interpreter

TINY DESK TEAM

Producer: Anamaria Sayre

Director/Editor: Kara Frame

Audio Technical Director: Josh Newell

Host/Series Producer: Bobby Carter

Videographers: Kara Frame, Maia Stern, Joshua Bryant, Zayrha Rodriguez

Audio Engineer: Neil Tevault

Production Assistants: Ashley Pointer, Dora Levite

Photographer: Alanté Serene

Tiny Desk Series Editor: Lars Gotrich

Executive Producer: Suraya Mohamed

Series Creators: Bob Boilen, Stephen Thompson

VP, Visuals and Music: Keith Jenkins

#tinydesk #nprmusic #pjsinsuela