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NPR crowns Cure For Paranoia Tiny Desk champion.

5/12/2026

Summary

Cure For Paranoia Wins

NPR announced Dallas hip-hop group Cure For Paranoia as the 2026 Tiny Desk Contest winner.
Frontman Cameron McCloud said the win spreads their pro-mental health rap, with judges Bobby Carter, Robin Hilton and Tierra Whack selecting the group and naming 75-year-old Venezuelan soloist Yordano the Fan Favorite.
The Tiny Desk Contest On The Road tour runs from June 10 in Los Angeles to July 19 in Washington, D.C., stopping in San Francisco, Seattle, Austin and New York.

Summary

McCloud Wins

Cameron McCloud disclosed diagnoses of bipolar disorder and paranoid schizophrenia and said making music helped more than any medication.
He wrote a new rap verse each day throughout 2025, many of which formed the lyrics of the winning track “No Brainer.”
After missing a win in 2023, McCloud studied past Tiny Desk Contest winners and will speak on NPR’s All Things Considered on May 12, 2026.

Summary

Cure Wins TinyDesk

Cure for Paranoia won the 2026 Tiny Desk Contest, earning a Tiny Desk concert at NPR’s headquarters in Washington, D.C.
The contest received more than 6,000 submissions, each requiring a desk-featured video and an original song.
The group’s winning video was filmed before Tony Tasset’s 30-foot-tall eyeball sculpture in Downtown Dallas.
Core members Emcee Cameron McCloud, producers Jay Analog and Tomahawk Jonez rotate additional musicians for each entry.

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Cure For Paranoia Wins

NPR announced Dallas hip-hop group Cure For Paranoia as the 2026 Tiny Desk Contest winner.
Frontman Cameron McCloud said the win spreads their pro-mental health rap, with judges Bobby Carter, Robin Hilton and Tierra Whack selecting the group and naming 75-year-old Venezuelan soloist Yordano the Fan Favorite.
The Tiny Desk Contest On The Road tour runs from June 10 in Los Angeles to July 19 in Washington, D.C., stopping in San Francisco, Seattle, Austin and New York.

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