New Orleans group Tank and the Bangas got a big boost when they won a 2017 National Public Radio contest for “undiscovered bands. »
Seven years ago, New Orleans band Tank and the Bangas squeezed into the corner of a classroom and recorded themselves performing their song “Quick,” for National Public Radio’s Tiny Desk contest, the nonprofit’s annual search for the “next great undiscovered artist.”
Their video — a lively mix of funk, soul, hip-hop and spoken word — wowed NPR’s judges and won them an appearance on NPR’s popular, stripped-down Tiny Desk series, helping grow their loyal fanbase. A 2020 Grammy nomination for “Best New Artist,” followed, as did 2023 and 2024 Grammy nominations for “Best Progressive R & B Album” and “Best Global Music Performance,” respectively.
On Sunday, Tank and the Bangas will return to their home city for one of their biggest performances yet: the main stage of the Essence Festival of Culture, the world’s largest celebration of Black women, culture and communities.
The group has performed at Essence before, but those were miniconcerts in “super lounges,” created inside the Superdome’s massive corridors, not the mammoth stage on the Superdome’s floor.
The fact that the group will get to play on the main stage this year is “scary” and “exciting,” lead singer Tarriona “Tank” Ball told The Associated Press.
