At 7 a.m. Pacific Time on Jan. 13, 2026, NPR will open submissions for its 2026 Tiny Desk Contest. Musicians from all over the country are invited to compete for an opportunity to film a Tiny Desk Concert for the station’s hugely popular YouTube channel and go on a national tour. The winner will be paired with a music-industry mentor and be featured on NPR’s All Things Considered.
Since its debut in 2015, the Tiny Desk Contest has become a global phenomenon. Oakland blues singer Fantastic Negrito was the first winner, and his soulful, politically sharp Tiny Desk Concert performance at NPR’s Washington, D.C. office propelled him to national acclaim, with three Grammy wins and four nominations to date. Last year, the Bay took home the crown again when San Lorenzo local Ruby Ibarra wowed judges with a multilingual rap performance in English, Bisaya and Tagalog and an intergenerational, all-Filipino band.
The Tiny Desk Contest is open to musicians 18 years or older in the U.S., Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. To enter, contestants must film themselves performing 10 minutes or less of original music at any desk of their choice, upload their video to YouTube and then fill out the submission form. And because NPR is looking for undiscovered talent, contestants who already have recording contracts are disqualified.
Submissions close on Feb. 9, 2026. Read the full submission rules here.
