Different Radio Announces Regional MPR Music's Tiny Desk Contest Favorites

(Rochester, NY) March 15, 2016 – On the heels of the announcement of the national winner of NPR’s Tiny Desk Contest, Different Radio – WRUR-FM 88.5 Rochester and WITH-FM 90.1 Ithaca – is proud to announce its top eight regional picks. Rochester R&B artist Danielle Ponder and the Tomorrow People were named Different Radio’s Favorite. The other finalists were Driftwood, The Blind Spots, Richie & Rosie, Susanna Rose, Meg Williams, Swamp Trotter, and Band of Lovers.

As the Different Radio Favorite, Danielle Ponder and the Tomorrow People will perform at a special concert at the Little Theatre in the fall (date TBA). All eight bands are currently featured on a special page on WRUR.org and WITHradio.org. Stay tuned to hear future plans on how Different Radio will celebrate these artists. 

The Tiny Desk Contest was inspired by NPR Music’s desire to help fans find music they love and support artists throughout their careers. NPR Music received more than 6,000 submissions for its Tiny Desk Contest. Of those, 55 entries came from the upstate New York region. On March 3, 2016 NPR Music announced Gaelynn Lea of Duluth, Minnesota as this year’s national winner. Lea has bene playing violin for more than 20 years.  She builds on a repertoire of traditional Celtic and American fiddle music, writing original songs that incorporate folk-rock influences, looping tracks and an inventive improvisatory style. Her winning video can be viewed here:  tinydeskcontest.npr.org/celebration/

More about Different Radio’s Regional Picks:
Danielle Ponder and the Tomorrow People:  Danielle Ponder and the Tomorrow People transcend musical genres with a blast of deep, powerful groove and soul. The band is the groove while Ponder’s pipes keep it rooted in soul. http://daniellepondermusic.com/

Driftwood: From the Binghamton, New York music scene comes Driftwood, a band with a rock n’ roll soul and a folk art mind. Carving out a name for themselves with electrifying live performances, they bring one of the most unique, raw sounds to the Americana/roots music scene. http://driftwoodtheband.com/

The Blind Spots: This all original, female-fronted, five-piece moxy rock band from Ithaca, NY is driving hard at bigger things and has been busy building an airtight justification for all the buzz surrounding it, both in its hometown and throughout the region. http://www.theblindspots.com/

Richie & Rosie:  Richie Stearns and Rosie Newton are a dynamic duo performing music rooted in the Americana tradition. http://richieandrosie.com/

Susanna Rose: A Rochester, NY singer and song writer who plays original acoustic folk music. https://susannarose.bandcamp.com/music

Meg Williams: Meg Williams is a guitarist/singer-songwriter from Hornell, NY, currently based out of Rochester. She plays solo, duos with bassist Danny Ziemann & singer/trumpeter/guitarist Sara Rogers, and with her full band, Meg Williams Band.  http://www.megwilliamsmusic.com/

Swamp Trotter: From Rochester, Swamp Trotter is a collection of multi-instrumentalists, conjuring fresh indie rock and folk. https://soundcloud.com/swamp-trotter

Band of Lovers: Guitarist Dave Strumfeld and ukulele player Sabina Beachdell make up this acoustic duo. http://bandoflovers.net/

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