Alanté Serene | January 12, 2026

Confident. Creative. Cool. Those are three words that describe Destin Conrad as he makes his Tiny Desk debut, transforming our office into his own version of a jazz club. Fresh off his first Grammy nomination, the singer-songwriter arrived ready to prove exactly why it was earned. Conrad weaves songs from his alt-R&B album, LOVE ON DIGITAL, with tracks from his alt-jazz project, wHIMSY, to build an alternative universe rooted entirely in intention.

The set takes off with the controlled tension of "wHIP," giving space for a trumpet solo from Keyon Harrold before effortlessly easing into "wASH U AWAY." Next, Conrad introduces Vanisha Gould for the playful duet, "A Lonely Detective." He then reimagines songs from LOVE ON DIGITAL in ways we've never heard before, including a moody, seductive turn as his chain-smoking alter-ego, "MR. E." That leads us seamlessly into the warm, gentle groove of "SO NICE." As Conrad concludes with his charming cut, "KISSING IN PUBLIC," it's clear that he's an artist fully in command of his universe, inviting anyone lucky enough to watch to step inside it with him.

SET LIST

"wHIP"

"wASH U AWAY"

"A Lonely Detective"

"LOVE!"

"IN THE AIR"

"MR. E"

"SO NICE"

"KISSING IN PUBLIC"

MUSICIANS

Destin Conrad: vocals

Slimwav: percussion, music director

Mack Keane: piano, background vocals

Maxwell Hunter: guitar

Louie Lastic: bass

Daniel Venz: drums

Dan Foster: saxophone

Keyon Harrold: trumpet

Astyn Turr: background vocals

Vanisha Gould: background vocals

TINY DESK TEAM

Producer: Alanté Serene

Director/Editor: Joshua Bryant

Audio Technical Director: Josephine Nyounai

Host/Series Producer: Bobby Carter

Videographers: Joshua Bryant, Maia Stern, Mitra I. Arthur

Audio Engineer: Tiffany Vera Castro

Production Assistants: Dhanika Pineda, Dora Levite

Tiny Desk Team: Kara Frame, Josh Newell

Series Editor: Lars Gotrich

Executive Producer: Suraya Mohamed

Executive Director: Sonali Mehta

Series Creators: Bob Boilen, Stephen Thompson, Robin Hilton

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