Watch Scarface Play His Southern Rap Classics on NPR's ‘Tiny Desk Concert’

Scarface performed a number of his classics on NPR’s Tiny Desk Concert series.

During the 31-minute set, he played six songs: “On My Block,” “Mary Jane,” “I Seen a Man Die,” Fuck Faces,” “Mind Playing Tricks on Me,” and a tribute to 2Pac with their 1997 collaboration “Smile.”

The Houston rapper also had a special guest join him: his longtime collaborator Mike Dean, who worked on Scarface’s 1994 album The Diary and 1997 album The Untouchable, among others. The band was rounded out with an eight-piece collective of musicians.

At one point, the Geto Boys rapper brought out his son, Bryce, and applauded his “exceptional” musicianship, saying Bryce is “4,000 times better than I’ll ever be.”

Tiny Desk producer DJ Cuzzin B lauded Scarface’s performance as, “The best hip-hop Tiny Desk we’ve ever put out,” adding that the Houston native is the “new crown holder.”

In 2022, Scarface announced his 32-date farewell tour, which saw stops in Los Angeles, Portland, Kansas City, Nashville, Washington D.C., and Austin, before wrapping on Aug. 27 in Odessa, Texas.

The excursion came a year after he successfully received a kidney transplant from his son, Chris, after a severe bout with COVID-19 and kidney failure.

“My son saved my life, and I can’t say enough about him. That boy saved my life, man. And I love him so much. But I always said that shit, though. He’s the best son a guy could have.”

Back in 2013, Scarface sat down with Complex for an extensive interview where he recalled the making of songs like “On My Block,” “I Seen a Man Die,” and “Mind Playing Tricks on Me.” Read it here.