NPR is hosting its Tiny Desk Contest again this year. Judges accept submissions until Monday, Feb. 10.
The contest started in 2014 to help undiscovered artists enter the music industry. One of the judges this year includes Tiny Desk Concert host and series producer Bobby Carter.
"My teammates and I at NPR, we hang our hat on discovery. There is nothing like discovering something fresh and new," Carter said.
Many Tiny Desk Contest winners have achieved immense success, according to Carter. Winners are paired up with a mentor in the music industry to help jumpstart their careers. Notable winners include last year's winner - a multi-dimensional musical group, The Philharmonik. Another one is the 2017 winner, the R&B musical group and six-time Grammy-nominated Tank and The Bangas.
Artists can submit their talents by going to The Tiny Desk Contest Site
The 2025 Tiny Desk Contest panel includes returning judges like Carter, Tiny Desk alums, and people from favorite NPR member stations.
Notable judges include singer-songwriter Alynda Segarra of Hurray for the Riff Raff, Bay Area Rapper LaRussel, and singer-songwriter Audry Nuna. All three of these artists have performed behind the Tiny Desk.
Carter encouraged aspiring musicians to submit their talents. He and a team of judges are viewing every video submitted.
"There is no one thing that we are looking for, just something that we can feel, something with some soul. Something that could be quirky, jubilant, or super joyful. We are looking for something that stands out," he said.
For Carter, he realized music was his calling as far back as high school.
"I wasn't a great athlete or student; music was the thing that always lit me inside," Carter said.
His first goal in his music career was to get on the radio. He DJ'd in high school and college, later at member station WJSU in Jackson, Mississippi.
The St. Louis native said his music career started by working at Sam Goody, a local record store, where he discovered music's many layers and dimensions.
One of his favorite Tiny Desk concerts was last year because it was so layered. The multi-genre Argentinian band Ca7riel & Paco Amoroso was unknown in the United States before their Tiny Desk concert, but now their performance has about 25 million views on YouTube.
"I didn't realize how layered and how profound the sound of Argentina is," explained Carter. "There are just so many elements you cannot put that thing in any box genre-wise. It knocked me out.
He knew early in his life he wanted to impact the music industry and has been doing so since.
Carter is a pivotal figure in Tiny Desk Concert and Contest. He helped build the program into its success today, which averages 40 million views per month on its YouTube page.
Carter started working at NPR in Washington, D.C., in 2000 as an intern in the 'New Media' department, developing digital infrastructure for their site. His goal when he started was to work in music in some capacity. At the time of his hiring, however, NPR was solely focused on News and Culture and did not really have an opportunity for music. NPR Tiny Desk started in 2008, just a year after NPR Music launched.
According to Carter's NPR biography page, in 2021, what began as a small Tiny Desk celebration of Black History Month turned into a cross-cultural event combining film, photojournalism and commentary. Since then, he has been able to create partnerships with HBO, Complexcon and Amazon. He is also a globally respected DJ, writer, public speaker and judge for the Tiny Desk contest.
