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Suraya Mohamed | March 11, 2025
Rapper and singer .idk.’s acronym stands for Ignorantly Delivering Knowledge, a stage name he’s used since he released his first mixtapes back in 2014. Since then, he’s produced a multitude of albums and singles, including BRAVADO + INTiMO. Popular songs from that project are included in this infectious set. He also performs "SUPERNOVA (i)," which includes an interpolation of Roberta Flack’s "Killing Me Softly."
With a wide range of talents and influences, the rapper’s music reflects a broad range of his life experiences. "A lot of people don’t know I started making music in prison," IDK told the audience. "…whatever song was in my head, if I knew it I would sing it and that would be like entertainment for a lot of the other inmates and stuff," he continued. "So really I started off singing and I got into this rap thing because that was where my heart was."
He demonstrates his musical versatility throughout the set. Starting with "24," a rap hit from his 2019 album, Is He Real?, this Tiny Desk arrangement is infused with the rhythms of go-go, the official music of Washington, D.C. It’s also a reflection of his early years growing up in the suburbs of the city. An outspoken critic of the criminal justice system, .idk. ends his set with "Mr. Police," a thoughtful, jazzy song that reinforces one of the key principles that drives him: the idea of opposing constructs, and that ignorance and knowledge are in contrast.
SET LIST
"24"
"TiFFANY (B)"
"DENiM (B)"
"STiLL i (i)(DENiM DEMO)"
"SUPERNOVA (i)"
"SEE YOU AGAiN (B.i.)"
"Mr. Police"
MUSICIANS
.idk.: vocals
Andrew Torgelson: saxophone, flute
Blue Rondo: keys, piano
Chris Hon: bass
Joey Antico: drums
Keith "Sauce" Robinson: percussion
Henry Manning: vibraphone
Cecily Bumbray: background vocals
Tashera Robinson: background vocals
TINY DESK TEAM
Producer: Suraya Mohamed
Director/Editor: Joshua Bryant
Audio Technical Director: Josephine Nyounai
Host/Series Producer: Bobby Carter
Videographers: Joshua Bryant, Maia Stern, Kara Frame, Mitra I Arthur
Audio Engineer: Valentina Rodriguez Sanchez
Production Assistant: Ashley Pointer
Photographer: Alanté Serene
Tiny Desk Team: Lars Gotrich, Josh Newell
Series Creators: Bob Boilen, Stephen Thompson
VP, Visuals and Music: Keith Jenkins
#nprmusic #tinydesk #idk
