Happy Friday! It was a big week for Minnesotans making waves in the national sphere, including a quintet of a capella singers from Minneapolis who landed on prime time TV as contestants on NBC's The Sing-Off. But we begin this week with a little rapper named Dessa, who you can see playing at the Doomtree Blowouts all weekend long...

Dessa's Tiny Desk

"Man, #tinydesk is a cultural force. I've done 30-date tours that garnered less press," Dessa tweeted earlier this week. It's true: social media lit up with news that the rapper and singer was the latest to star in NPR Music's popular series. She nailed it, too, despite fighting off a cold the day of the shoot. For more of Dessa's witticisms check out this roundup, and get ready for Wits next Thursdsay, December 19, when she'll guest star along with actor Jason Ritter.

Home Free's Big Break

First, a primer: There is a musical reality show on NBC that involves a capella groups competing against one another. Kind of like The Voice, except Jewel is a judge, and everything feels like a scene from Glee. There are a bunch of great groups competing this season on The Sing-Off, but where do you suppose the quintet of down-home white guys with beards are from? The ones who call themselves "the world's first country vocal band"? If you guessed Minnesota, then you get a prize. Ladies and gents, I present to you our own Home Free:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N8lr5hao23w

Koo Koo Kanga Roo's Workout DVD

Fresh off a successful tour with Frank Turner and just in time for the holidays, Minneapolis's favorite (only?) high-octane aerobic sing-along dance-pop duo just dropped an hour-long workout DVD. Sample their latest offering in the video below, and grab the DVD here.

Black Diet's Debut

It's not often that an artist can take me from zero to fan in under 30 seconds, but that's exactly what happened the first time I played this debut video from Black Diet. Hit play and see if that big, powerful voice doesn't pull you in just as fast—and if you dig it as much as I do, you can pick it up as a limited run split-7", which also features tracks from Southside Desire.

http://vimeo.com/76978761

Buffalo Moon's Moves

With a new album due out January 11, Buffalo Moon released a new video this week for the record's title track, "Machista" (which means "male chauvinist" in Spanish). Ecuadorean-born frontwoman frontwoman Karen Freire seems to be moving more toward the center stage as the band evolves, and the new album will feature lyrics penned in both Spanish and English.