When Dua Lipa When she attended the Tiny Desk, she had nothing to prove – and a lot to accomplish. Finally, the singer's Tiny Desk (home) concerttaken in London on the heels of their 2020 blockbuster Future nostalgiastill holds the record for the most viewed Tiny Desk concert in history, its 130 million views surpassing even numbers like MacMiller And Anderson .Paak.

Four years later, the pop superstar finally graced the actual Tiny Desk, this time armed with four warm and inviting songs from Radical optimism. Arriving in the first half of this year – when the prevailing storylines in music were so often about grievances and rivalries – Radical optimism was notable for his comparatively sunny and forgiving views on failed and failing relationships, seduction, new love and old wounds. And of course she delivered a world-beating banger with “Houdini,” which joins previous Dua Lipa classics (“New Rules,” “Levitating,” “Don’t Start Now”) on her own personal Mount Rushmore.

Fitting for an artist whose latest songs often reflect a pursuit of personal growth — see: “Happy for You” — Lipa and her team streamed through the NPR Music offices with a mix of low-drama professionalism and unmistakable warmth. We've dealt with a lot of stars (and their teams) over the years, and as often as we're asked by people to talk about people who were difficult, for the most part we've collected stories from people who were wonderful to be around . Even among all of these, Lipa and her people stood out: they were friendly, accommodating, funny and playful.

This also shows in front of the camera, as you will see here. This is happy music at a time when we could all use it.

SET LIST

• “Training Season”
• “These walls”
• “I'm happy for you”
• “Houdini”

MUSICIAN

• Dua Lipa: vocals
• Matthew Carroll: bass
• Adam “Smiley” Wade: drums
• Alex Lanyon: guitar
• Georgie Ward: Key
• Ciara O'Connor: Vocals
• Naomi Scarlett: Vocals
• Sophie Galpin: glockenspiel, vocals

SMALL DESK TEAM

• Producers: Bobby Carter, Stephen Thompson
• Director/Editor: Kara Frame
• Audio Technical Director: Josh Newell
• Host/Series Producer: Bobby Carter
• Videographers: Kara Frame, Joshua Bryant, Maia Stern, Alanté Serene
• Sound engineer: Tiffany Vera Castro
• Production Assistant: Ashley Pointer
• Photographer: Grace Widyatmadja
• Tiny Desk Copier: Hazel Cills
• Executive Producer: Suraya Mohamed
• Series creators: Bob Boilen, Stephen Thompson
• Vice President, Visuals and Music: Keith Jenkins