Late last month, after the deadline had passed for musicians to submit videos to NPR’s Tiny Desk Contest, NPR Music posted a blog featuring a few of the entries that had caught their eye. One of the seven video entries noted was a unique one from Cincinnati's Knotts, the compelling Indie/Art Pop project led by singer/musician Adalia Boehne that is described cheekily (but not completely inaccurately) as “Björk meets Spice Girls meets Gladys Knight and the Pips.” Knotts’ Tiny Desk performance was filmed inside of Walnut Hills’ A Mirage Beauty Salon.
Here’s what NPR Music’s Marissa Lorusso had to say about the clip:
"We're always happy to spot unusual locations when we're browsing through Tiny Desk Contest entries — so we loved finding Cincinnati-based Knotts, whose entry takes place in a local beauty salon. 'Awake' is a groovy pop song, led by songwriter Adalia Boehne and backed up by her bandmates Jordan Wilson, Antoine Franklin and Jonathan Mango. 'I finally found my voice,' Boehne sings on the song's chorus — getting some backup vocals and nods of approval from the other women in the salon, who sit under hairdryers as they flip nonchalantly through magazines. (Knotts shared some great behind-the-scenes photos of the video shoot you should check out, too.)"
There were dozens of other Cincinnati entries from a wide range of genres in the submissions pool for this year’s Tiny Desk Contest, the winner of which gets their own official Tiny Desk Concert and a slot headlining a tour sponsored by NPR. (The winner is chosen by a panel of expert judges, including artists and NPR Music writers and staffers.) Below are just a few of the Cincinnati-area contenders. You can search entries by city and zip code here. The winner will be announced later this month.
