Among over 7,000 entries to NPR Music’s Tiny Desk Contest earlier this year, one East Bay Area native captivated the judges with her “beautifully arranged music, passion and, above all, authenticity.”
Rapper Ruby Ibarra was declared the winner of the Tiny Desk Contest in May, after submitting a trilingual, intergenerational performance of her single, “Bakunawa.”
Ibarra was born in the Philippines and immigrated to the East Bay with her family at a young age. Much of Ibarra’s music tackles topics of identity, immigration and the “American Dream.” All of which are a reflection of her personal experiences. The Filipino community she found in the Bay Area is what drives her to tell the stories in her music.
“I look at the people in my Filipino-American community and how a lot of them often still don’t have the opportunity to share their stories and highlight who they are and where they came from,” said Ibarra. “Who is going to tell their story if not me?”
A distinct element Ibarra uses to showcase her culture in her music is her multilingual flow through English, Tagalog and Bisaya. “It only becomes natural that I do a lot of those language switch ups in my lyrics to help illustrate those stories even more,” said Ibarra. “It’s a conscious decision of wanting to highlight these languages on a visible level in hip-hop.”
The Bay Area not only played a part in her finding a Filipino community, but also contributed to her falling in love with hip-hop. “With there being such a vibrant music scene and culture here, that absolutely cultivated and strengthened my love for [hip-hop], and also helped shape and develop myself as an artist.”
For Ibarra, winning the Tiny Desk Contest wasn’t only a dream come true, but a confirmation of her hard work. “It was a feeling of validation, that we deserved to be there,” said Ibarra. In her performance, she shared that in 2019 she submitted a video for the contest, but wasn’t chosen. However, for the rapper, winning in 2025 felt so much sweeter than it would have then.
“Ultimately, it didn’t even feel like winning a contest, it felt more like a reminder to ourselves that we’ve been building the right path because these last six years the music I created has been authentically me,” said Ibarra. “I’ve never had to challenge or change who I am. Knowing that I didn’t compromise in that entire journey made it a lot more special.”
After her Washington, D.C. performance, Ibarra and her band set off on a 10-city tour around the country. From performing in Los Angeles to Philadelphia, Ibarra had a chance to reflect on and appreciate the Bay Area’s diversity after meeting with her fans. After meeting her fans in Tennessee she said, “A lot of them shared that this was their first time seeing a Filipino artist on stage.”
The Tiny Desk winner returned to the Bay Area to perform at Music in the Park in San Jose on Sept. 21 alongside Bay Area artists LaRussell, Souls of Mischief, and Kung Fu Vampire. “To be on the same stage as some of the historical, iconic hip-hop heavyweights from the Bay Area, to me, is an absolute honor.”
The Sunday event brought local food trucks, vendors and music to Plaza de Cesar Chavez where the community gathered for a night of local artists to share the stage in the South Bay Area. “Bringing the music back home to the Bay Area, and us being able to showcase what we’ve been touring across the nation is a very special feeling,” said Ibarra. “There’s no place like home.”
