Singer, rapper, and writer Dessa has made a career of bucking genres and defying expectations—she's appeared on the Billboard charts, recorded with the GRAMMY-winning Minnesota Orchestra, contributed to The Hamilton Mixtape and the RBG documentary soundtrack, and performed at clubs and festivals on five continents. She’s written for The New York Times and National Geographic Traveler, presented a TED talk with more than 2 million views, and published a memoir, My Own Devices, that was recognized by NPR and Amazon as a best book of 2018.

Dessa also hosts the podcast Deeply Human, a co-production of the BBC, American Public Media, and iHeartRadio. The series explores scientific explanations of human behavior through interviews with top researchers, guided by Dessa's intellectual curiosity and wry sense of humor. NPR’s All Songs Considered called Dessa “a national treasure." The LA Times wrote that she “sounds like no one else.” On the stage and on the page, her style is defined by ferocity, wit, tenderness, and candor.