Spiros Exaras and Janie May: The Melting Pot

Join us on October 6th for an evening of music and video with multicultural roots. Featuring multi-award winning guitarist/composer Spiros Exaras and acclaimed singer/songwriter Janie May, this event will showcase new releases that fuse Latin and Mediterranean traditions and influences, crossing genres and embodying the spirit of resilience central to the immigrant experience.

Your paid ticket includes a drink of your choice from the bar and a selection of light hors d’oeuvres.

“Kalamatiano Medley” is an ambitious reimagining of traditional Greek music through the lens of contemporary jazz, Latin music, and jazz-rock. Arranged and composed by multi-award winning guitarist, composer, arranger, and producer Spiros Exaras, the recording features legendary Cuban saxophonist Paquito D’Rivera whose extraordinary career spans jazz, Latin music, classical music, and numerous cross-cultural collaborations.

Internationally, Spiros has collaborated with artists such as Shirley Bassey, Stacey Kent, Mark Murphy, Randy Brecker, Jon Benitez, Gerardo Velez, Ray Vega, and Grammy Award-winners Dave Valentin, Randy Brecker, Mark Egan and Arturo O’Farrill. He also played the searing guitar solo on Mariah Carey’s multi-platinum remix hit, “My All.”

Brooklyn-born and driven by soul, Janie May writes songs about what happens after you survive, when you choose yourself and don’t look back. A vocalist, songwriter, pianist, and classically-trained dancer of Puerto Rican and Italian descent, her sound feels both deeply personal and immediately relatable.

Her most recent album, Not Going Back, captures a pivotal emotional threshold: the moment you decide who you want to be and what you want for yourself. Janie’s music is for those who know what it’s like to take the leap, just as much as it is for those standing at the edge. Partially inspired by the Oscar-winning film Anora, it might sound like the soundtrack to a hypothetical sequel to that film.