Tiny Desk Premiere: Shae Universe

I just happened to be looking out of the office window when British-Nigerian singer-songwriter Shae Universe first pulled up outside of NPR HQ, just in time to see her take it all in. It was evidently a surreal moment for her as an up-and-coming artist, but once she began to fill the room up with her unique and stunning voice, it was clear that she had arrived — not just at the Tiny Desk, but effervescently onto America’s R&B and soul scene.

“This moment right here is not just one for British culture and R&B, this is for the independent artists, this is for the self-managed artists, this is for the darker-skinned Black women, this is for the shy ones with undeniable gifts, this is for the slow-burners,” Universe says in her set. Performing selections from her most recent album, Love’s Letter, Universe takes us on a journey of love in this concert in all forms: lust, romance and self-love. On “You Lose” she also takes a moment to pay homage to her early days as the pioneer of the U.K. subgenre R&Drill, where we hear her flex not only her smooth vocals but her bars with admirable precision. Universe closes out the show with “More Than Enough,” a gospel-infused ballad. It was beautiful witnessing her sing these affirmations for herself, and made me so excited for those who will discover her for the first time through this concert. Prepare yourself.

SET LIST

• “OOTW”
• “Summertime”
• “LOML”
• “Warzone”        
• “Passenger Princess” 
• “What’s Luv?” 
• “You Lose”
• “More Than Enough”

MUSICIANS

• Shae Universe: lead vocals 
• Isaac Oshuntola: bass 
• John Monk: guitar 
• Brandon Stennett: drums 
• Ronnie Heard: sax 
• Veritus Miller: keys 
• Kaylla Samuel: vocals 
• Auriana Chisholm: vocals

TINY DESK TEAM

• Producer: Ashley Pointer
• Director: Joshua Bryant
• Audio Technical Director: Neil Tevault
• Host/Series Producer: Bobby Carter
• Editor: Maia Stern 
• Videographers: Joshua Bryant, Maia Stern, Kara Frame, Mitra I. Arthur
• Audio Engineer: Tiffany Vera Castro
• Audio Mix: Josephine Nyounai
• Photographer: Michael Zamora
• Tiny Desk Copy Editor: Hazel Cills
• Executive Producer: Suraya Mohamed
• Series Creators: Bob Boilen, Stephen Thompson
• VP, Visuals and Music: Keith Jenkins