Anamaria Sayre | May 22, 2024
In the transfixing world of Ana Tijoux, joy and protest are perennial lovers. For three decades, the French-born Chilean rapper has traveled around the world, offering refuge for those seeking ways to sing of their outrage and heartbreak. At the Tiny Desk, she does the same, featuring tracks from across her catalog rich with cultural commentary and political critique.

Her first album in 10 years, Vida, teems with life. Blending danceable beats with her typical cutting delivery, she invites the listener to find her back where she started — living for the love of music and dancing for the love of life.

To close this performance, she conjures an enduring spirit of protest. During "Vida," featuring guest vocalist Monica Blaire, Tijoux quotes a song by Víctor Jara: "Yo no canto por cantar / Ni por tener buena voz / Canto porque la guitarra / Tiene sentido y razón." The Chilean musician and activist was arrested, tortured and murdered by the military during the coup led by dictator Augusto Pinochet in 1973; Jara's song "Manifiesto" was released posthumously in 1974. Translated, Tijoux raps, "I don't sing for the sake of singing / Or for having a good voice / I sing because the guitar / Has sense and reason."

SET LIST
"1977"
"Óyeme"
"Sacar la Voz"
"Vida"

MUSICIANS
Ana Tijoux: vocals
Federico Rocha: keyboards, vocals
Raúl Moya: bass, Moog, vocals
Nicolás Castillo: drums, vocals
Monica Blaire: guest vocals

TINY DESK TEAM
Producer: Anamaria Sayre
Director/Editor: Joshua Bryant
Audio Technical Director: Hannah Gluvna
Host/Series Producer: Bobby Carter
Videographers: Joshua Bryant, Kara Frame, Alanté Serene
Audio Engineer: Kwesi Lee
Production Assistant: Ashley Pointer
Photographer: Zayrha Rodriguez
Tiny Desk Team: Hazel Cills, Maia Stern
Executive Producer: Suraya Mohamed
Series Creators: Bob Boilen, Stephen Thompson
VP, Visuals and Music: Keith Jenkins

#tinydesk #nprmusic #anatijoux