ACL 2026: Cure for Paranoia

Saturday at 2pm.  According to their website bio:

Cure for Paranoia is the Dallas hip-hop and soul collective founded by Cameron McCloud, who was placed on medication for bipolar depression and paranoid schizophrenia a decade ago — and found the music worked better. A preschool teacher by day, McCloud posted a new verse every day of 2025, and those dailies became “No Brainer,” winner of NPR's 2026 Tiny Desk Contest, followed by the ten-city On The Road tour.

 The Dallas Observer gave their live show this review:

While McCloud naturally commanded attention, it can’t be overstated how crucial the band was to last night’s performance. They brought every track to new heights and included several instrumental breaks to fully emphasize every moment. McCloud was quick to step aside for a trumpet or sax solo and gave each member their own moment to shine...There’s no other way to cut it: If you weren’t at Trees last night, you missed out on a night of Dallas music magic. Between the stacked bill of dynamic openers and the powerhouse performance from Cure for Paranoia, the record release show was one for the books.

"No Brainer" is the song that won them the NPR Tiny Desk Contest. The lyrics are great. Funky song, too.  From NPR:

This year, we received more than 6,000 entries from independent artists across the country, but one act had undeniable star power. Among our judges, the decision to crown Cure For Paranoia was unanimous. 

Here is their NPR Tiny Desk Concert performance.  His speech between the 2nd and 3rd song is touching. It starts here if you want to skip ahead.

"&Pose" is good. The review of their live show says they extended the song to "10 minutes of all-out, pure, in-the-moment grooves. Everyone on stage was winded by the time they finished, and the audience exploded with applause."

This is the first song on the Tiny Desk Concert but I'll post again. More great lyrics. This may be my pick for this timeslot.