Annahstasia: Tiny Desk Concert

Take a deep breath. This is what songwriter Annahstasia tenderly instructs her band to do between songs; it’s also an apt description of what listening to her music can feel like.

Annahstasia’s voice is soothing, strong, textured and grounded. At the Tiny Desk, it’s exquisitely attuned with the band’s varied instrumentation. Like deep breaths, each song rises and falls as the group starts softly, builds to a crescendo, then lands in a gentle place.

For the finale, Annahstasia offers a twist on “Villain,” a standout track from her debut album Tether. What begins as a song about insecurity now ends with a new, more hopeful verse that she sings over Hailey Niswanger’s bird-like whistling: “Take it, take it back / All that you left within me / All the doubt and the fear / When love was always abundant in me.”

SET LIST

• “Stress Test”
• “Be Kind”
• “Sunday”
• “Villain”

MUSICIANS

• Annahstasia: vocals, guitar
• Mia Garcia: guitar, bass
• Yunus Iyriboz: oud, guitar
• Aaron Liao: bass, shruti box, piano, music director
• Hailey Niswanger: flute, alto sax
• Zander Howard-Scott: cello, piano

TINY DESK TEAM

• Producer: Elle Mannion
• Director: Maia Stern
• Audio Engineer/Mix: Hannah Gluvna
• Host/Series Producer: Bobby Carter
• Videographers: Maia Stern, Kara Frame, Joshua Bryant
• Video Editor: Nikki Birch
• Audio Director/Mix: Josh Newell
• Production Assistant: Ashley Pointer
• Series Editor: Lars Gotrich
• Executive Producer: Suraya Mohamed
• Executive Director: Sonali Mehta
• Series Creators: Bob Boilen, Stephen Thompson, Robin Hilton

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