Big Sean has debuted a new song dedicated to his son during his career-spanning Tiny Desk Concert.
The Detroit rapper delivered an intimate performance at NPR‘s office in Washington, D.C. that aired on Wednesday (March 27), and sandwiched an unreleased track that samples Jodeci‘s “Get On Up” between some of his biggest hits.
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Sean’s version is titled “Get Up,” and he introduced the song with a few sweet words about his one-year-old son Noah, who he shares with partner Jhené Aiko.
“I wanna dedicate this one to my son, Noah Hasani. Daddy loves you so much, boy,” he said. “And everybody just working through what they working through, making the best of what they got, you know?”
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The soulful, upbeat song finds the former G.O.O.D. Music MC reflecting on fatherhood and looking ahead to his son’s journey in life.
“The older that I get I’m feeling the resemblance/ I look into my son’s eyes and still see his innocence/ I see my inner-child in him and still the remanence/ Will he lose it to the world, is it imminent?/ Or is it something that me and his mama had instilled in him?” he raps.
The song can be heard at the 19:18 mark below.
Elsewhere during the 25-minute performance, Big Sean ran through over a dozen of his most recognizable songs backed by a live band that included Eryn Allen Kane on vocals, Amaire Johnson on keys and DJ Mo Beatz on the turntables.
In one of the longest setlists in Tiny Desk history, the 36-year-old delivered renditions of “Memories,” “Blessings,” “Play No Games,” “Marvin & Chardonnay” and “Bounce Back,” among others.
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Sean spoke to the audience between tracks, and before his closing performance of “I Don’t Fuck With You,” he spoke on the importance of his Tiny Desk Concert.
“It’s something my kids can look back on, something my family can look back on to see where I was at in my career,” he told the audience.
Sean Don also paid tribute to another Motor City legend during the performance, rocking a custom Detroit Tigers baseball cap adorned with the name of the late, great J Dilla.
That’s perhaps no surprise considering he’s rapped over two classic Dilla beats in recent weeks: Slum Village’s “Get Dis Money” alongside Bryson Tiller and a reworked version of The Pharcyde’s “Drop.”
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Sean also recently sampled Three 6 Mafia‘s 2006 anthem “Poppin’ My Collar” on “Precision,” the first single from his upcoming sixth album.
