D Smoke, an up and coming rapper from Inglewood, California, got his break in 2019 after winning the Netflix Series “Rhythm & Flow” which was hosted by Cardi B, T.I., and Chance the Rapper. National Public Radio invited the rapper and pianist to create a Tiny Desk Concert on May 29, 2020, from the comfort of his home studio. Tiny Desk Concerts are stripped-down performances of well-known songs from an array of artists. D Smoke’s at home concert created another level of intimacy as the viewer is face to face with just the artist and his piano.
He wore only sweatpants and a black T-shirt and spoke to the camera as if the audience was there, which provided comfort for the viewer at home as he created a natural, laid-back vibe for his set. D Smoke performed two songs, “Seasons Pass” and “Black Habits II” for the first time in this Tiny Desk performance, which is just one reason it is an exceptional display of talent.
As he rapped over his slow, piano chord patterns, D Smoke spoke of injustice and inequality in his first song, “No Commas”. He discussed racism and the plight of trying to keep up in a world that is seemingly working against him. His fingers raced up and down the keys to switch the tempo as he simultaneously switched from English to Spanish towards the end of the song, showing his versatility.
His second song, “Closer to God”, questioned his relationship with marijuana. He discussed the duality in smoking but also being religious as his father is a preacher. He struggles with his drug usage and tells himself in the song’s chorus, “I don’t know why I get high, maybe I’m tryna get closer to God”. This short song is composed of mainly bass keys that emote a sort of soulful despair. D Smoke expressed his gratitude to Tiny Desk in a break between songs. He spoke about quarantine and its effects on society economically and socially.
He stressed the importance of being mindful of others during this time, which led to the theme of love in his third song, “Seasons Pass”. The first line of the song, “life is but a gift and you got love to give yeah” is a positive message to send out, especially to young people in today’s society where emotions are viewed as weak. D Smoke’s take on love differentiates himself from most rappers who make it uncool. The bridge in “Seasons Pass” is so moving that I found myself closing my eyes and nodding my head as he riffed off his piano keys and enunciated perfectly through tongue twisters of alliteration to create a powerful verse about a romantic relationship.
“Black Habits II”, D Smoke’s fourth and final song, is where he talked about his childhood and the things he encountered as a young man. Single parenting, meeting his father late in life, his father then being incarcerated, love and other things he experienced growing up all come together in this story of his life. The song starts slow and melodic but soon the keys fade to complement D Smoke’s voice as he rhymes steadily over them. Black Habits II embraced his background and allowed him to speak passionately about the Black Community through the use of repetition and metaphor. Entranced is the word to describe how captivating this last performance was. Police sirens could be heard in the background from outside his home as if the world was coming together to play a part in the song.“Black Habits II” poetically describes the struggles, behaviors, and misconceptions of Black people in America.
If you want to experience the concert, you can watch the concert here!