While recent years have proved that imagination is the only limitation for artists to perform a terrific Tiny Desk Concert, bluegrass star Billy Strings’ recent appearance was a throwback to its earlier days. In fact, producer Kara Frame shared that during his visit to the NPR offices, Strings requested fewer microphones to capture “the way these instruments are meant to sound.”
Strings and his band kicked off the four-song set with a spirited rendition of “Red Daisy” from his 2021 album, Renewal, before transitioning into masterful performances of “My Alice” and “Malfunction Junction” from his latest full-length, 2024’s Highway Prayers. The latter, a fully instrumental track, showed off the prowess of Strings and his ensemble: Jarrod Walker on mandolin, Alex Hargreaves on fiddle, Billy Failing on banjo, and Royal Masat on bass.
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Before closing the set with another Highway Prayers cut, “Gild the Lily,” String praised the experience of playing the fabled Tiny Desk. “We’ve been lucky to play a lot of cool venues,” he said. “But this one’s different. It has that same soul to it because — I’ve seen so many amazing performances that happened right here and I kind of believe that love and spirit kind of soaks into this environment, so just standing here feels like a special thing.”
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Strings has a handful of remaining 2025 US tour dates. Next February, he’ll return to the road for a run that includes multi-night stands in Athens, Georgia; Asheville, North Carolina; Nashville, Tennessee; Savannah, Georgia; and Charlottesville, Virginia. See his full schedule below, and get tickets here.
Billy Strings 2025-2026 Tour Dates:
12/10 – Tulsa, OK @ BOK Center
12/12 – Fort Worth, TX @ Dickies Arena
12/13 – Austin, TX @ Moody Center
12/14 – Austin, TX @ ACL Live at the Moody Theater
02/06 – Athens, GA @ Akins Ford Arena
02/07 – Athens, GA @ Akins Ford Arena
02/10 – Asheville, NC @ ExploreAsheville.com Arena
02/11 – Asheville, NC @ ExploreAsheville.com Arena
02/13 – Asheville, NC @ ExploreAsheville.com Arena
02/14 – Asheville, NC @ ExploreAsheville.com Arena
02/20 – Nashville, TN @ Bridgestone Arena
02/21 – Nashville, TN @ Bridgestone Arena
02/22 – Nashville, TN @ Ryman Auditorium
04/02 – St. Augustine, FL @ St. Augustine Amphitheatre
04/03 – St. Augustine, FL @ St. Augustine Amphitheatre
04/04 – St. Augustine, FL @ St. Augustine Amphitheatre
04/08 – Tampa, FL @ Benchmark International Arena
04/10 – Savannah, GA @ Enmarket Arena
04/11 – Savannah, GA @ Enmarket Arena
04/14 – Greensboro, NC @ First Horizon Coliseum
04/17 – Charlottesville, VA @ John Paul Jones Arena
04/18 – Charlottesville, VA @ John Paul Jones Arena
04/22 – Charleston, WV @ Charleston Coliseum
04/24 – Fishers, IN @ Fishers Event Center
04/25 – Fishers, IN @ Fishers Event Center
04/26 – Fishers, IN @ Fishers Event Center
