As a special tribute to Mac Miller on the anniversary of the late Pittsburgh rapper’s now-iconic NPR Tiny Desk Concert, his friend and collaborator Ty Dolla Sign performed their song “Cinderella” after taping his own Tiny Desk set with fellow Mac Miller partners Thundercat and Justus West. The song originally appeared on Mac’s second-to-last album, The Divine Feminine, and since Mac’s final Tiny Desk was published on August 8, 2018, Ty, his band, and the Tiny Desk producers found it appropriate to publish the tribute performance before Ty’s own full set, which will premiere at a later date.
Mac’s own Tiny Desk performance included songs from Swimming, and his band also featured Thundercat on bass and Justus West on guitar. NPR Tiny Desk producer Bobby Carter writes that with the anniversary of that set’s release date so close to Ty’s recording, he reminded Ty that Mac gave one of his final performances around the same time a year ago, prompting a huddle within the band that resulted in the heartfelt performance of Ty’s song with Mac. The secondary, tribute set was shot separately from Ty’s original set, giving NPR the chance to premiere it one year to the day from Mac’s own performance.
Mac’s Tiny Desk has become one of the most-viewed episodes in the series. Mac collaborator Vince Staples closed out every stop of his Smile, You’re On Camera Tour by playing the episode in its entirety.
