Ruby Ibarra kicks off NPR Tiny Desk tour with sold-out shows
Ruby Ibarra | Photo from rubyibarra/Instagram
Fresh from headlining the Philippine Independence Day celebration in San Jose, California, Filipino American rapper Ruby Ibarra continues to ride high on a wave of milestones.
Taking to Instagram, she announced: “Our Tiny Desk Concert is out NOW! This has all been such an incredible experience and one that we’ve been dreaming about for years. All in due time. Maraming salamat (Thank you), [nprmusic]!!!”
This note comes shortly after Ibarra was named winner of NPR’s 2025 Tiny Desk Contest, a dream come true for many independent artists.
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Now, with her Tiny Desk victory in hand, Ibarra is hitting the road. In a follow-up post, she revealed a 10-city US tour alongside Millington and Ouida.
Half of the stops, including Los Angeles, Chicago, Austin and Denver, are already sold out.
“We hope to see and meet y’all this summer!” she said, inviting fans to catch them live. “Are there any cities we should think about adding?!”
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The tour kicked off on June 6 in San Jose, California and continued the next day in Vallejo. By June 11, she hit Los Angeles, followed by a sold-out show in Petaluma on June 13. Portland, Oregon hosted her on June 16, before she traveled east to a packed crowd in Chicago on June 23.
Her journey continued with performances in Nashville on June 25, Austin on June 27 and Denver on June 29. She’ll close out her tour in two cities: New York City on July 17 and Washington, D.C., on July 19.
Fans can now watch the full Tiny Desk performance on NPR’s platforms and even help shape her setlist. “What songs should we include on tour?” she asked. “Is it time to preview the next single?”
Standing out from over 7,400 entries, Ibarra’s winning submission was a live performance of “Bakunawa,” a genre-defying track that showcases her lyrical prowess and deep cultural roots.
