Two Distinctive Musical Styles: One Weekend at the WHBPAC

Long Island-based singer-songwriter Jeff LeBlanc will return to the Westhampton Beach Performing Arts Center in his fourth headlining performance on Friday, November 15, while the jazz-steeped sojourn Some Enchanted Evening will take the stage on Sunday, November 17. “This is an exciting weekend of performances that music lovers of all ages will enjoy,” said WHBPAC Marketing Director Heather Draskin.

Since releasing his first album release in 2009, LeBlanc has epitomized success as an independent artist – netting millions of streams, achieving both satellite and commercial radio play, selling-out headline shows and sharing the stage with wide range of artists including Boz Scaggs, Tori Kelly, Chris Stapleton, Chaka Khan, John Hiatt, Michael McDonald, Gavin DeGraw, Robert Cray, Jamie Cullum, Chris Isaak, Brett Dennen, Lori McKenna and many more. He returns to the WHBPAC with a full band and brand-new music. Originally from Center Moriches, Leblanc has released four albums on independent labels and found success on streaming radio. With an earthy, pop-folk sound infused with thoughtful lyricism, LeBlanc has been compared to John Mayer, Mat Kearney, and Amos Lee.

Celebrating a century of music from beloved Broadway shows, Some Enchanted Evening is an engaging and wildly popular tribute to the Great American Songbook and more. This enthralling concert seamlessly blends timeless music and dance – celebrating beloved classics (“Over the Rainbow,” “The Sound of Music”) to contemporary favorites (“My Shot”). Featuring Emmy-nominated trumpeter and charismatic crooner Benny Benack III, the exceptionally talented singer and social media sensation Stella Cole, and dazzling tap dance phenom Jabu Graybeal, Some Enchanted Evening is more than a show. It’s an unforgettable experience that pays homage to the enduring legacy of Broadway, bringing together music and dance in a way that resonates with audiences of all ages.

Led by Emmy-nominated trumpeter and singer Benny Benack III, Benack has proven to be that rarest of talents: not only a fiery trumpet player with a stirring command of the post-bop trumpet vernacular in the vein of Kenny Dorham and Freddie Hubbard, but also a singer with a sly, mature, naturally expressive delivery in the post-Sinatra mold, performing standards and his own astute songs with a thrilling sense of showmanship. He has performed internationally as an Emcee/Host for the YouTube sensation Postmodern Jukebox, and achieved his own viral success amassing millions of views for his crooning alongside the Grammy-award winning “8-Bit Big Band”. In early 2020 he released A Lot of Livin’ to Do, the follow-up to his well-received 2017 debut One of a Kind. This sophomore effort, richly varied in mood and brimming with bop inflection, features bassist extraordinaire and jazz ambassador Christian McBride (whose Grammy-award winning Big Band frequently calls upon Benny in the trumpet section) and drummer/producer Ulysses Owens, Jr., as well as the radiant Takeshi Ohbayashi on piano and Rhodes. His vocalese duet on “Social Call” from this album alongside fellow young star vocalist Veronica Swift became an instant smash hit single, being transcribed and learned by jazz vocalists around the world. Alongside his global touring as a straight-ahead/contemporary bandleader, Benny has appeared as a trumpet soloist in more commercial circles alongside Josh Groban, Ben Folds, fashion icon Isaac Mizrahi, Ann Hampton Callaway and more. Third in a generational line of Pittsburgh jazz notables, Benny follows in the footsteps of his trumpeter/bandleader grandfather, Benny Benack, Sr. (1921-86), and his father Benny Benack, Jr., a saxophonist/clarinetist who gave the young Benny his first professional experience. 

The evening will also feature the sublime vocals of celebrated social media sensation, Stella K. Cole. Buoyed in part by her weekly livestream concerts on Tiktok from 2020 to 2022, the multi-talented singer’s ever-growing numbers both embody and defy every superlative cliché (staggering, mind blowing, through the roof). Her most viral singing video has a whopping 27 million views. With a combined social media following of over 1.6 million, Stella has caught the attention of superstars David Foster, James Taylor, Michael Buble, John Mayer and Meghan Trainor. Countless devoted fans from social media flock to see her perform, many of them traveling cross country and overseas to attend her sold out headlining concerts around the world. She has performed in venues like Madison Square Garden, Carnegie Hall, The Kennedy Center, Birdland and the Cafe Carlyle. In 2023, she toured the United States, Australia and New Zealand with Scott Bradlee’s Postmodern Jukebox. She released a stylish, swinging rendition of Miley Cyrus’ “Flowers” with the group in 2023 to mass acclaim, racking up more than 6 million views. “I think what makes me stand out as an artist is that I’ve learned that being a good singer is more than just having a pretty voice,” she says. “It’s about effective storytelling, communicating feelings and emotions through lyrical narratives. A few years ago, I was too focused on how my voice sounded, but since I began concentrating on telling a story, I’ve become a better all-around artist. I love that with the exception of the Billie Eilish tune, these songs were written decades before I was born, yet they feel like they are about my life,” said Cole.

Rounding out the trio is tap phenomenon Jabu Graybeal, an award winning artist who studied with JUBA award winner Gene Medler and was a member for 9 years of the North Carolina Youth Tap Ensemble (NCYTE), one of the most renowned youth tap companies in the world. Jabu is a Jacob’s Pillow and YoungArts Foundation alumni who has worked and performed with a diverse group of companies, such as Caleb Teicher & Company, Emmy Nominee Chloe Arnold’s Apartment 33, Michelle Dorrance, Riverdance, and American choreographer Justin Peck. He is featured in Apple TV’s movie music “Spirited with Will Ferrell and Ryan Reynolds.  He was the first tap dancer to be accepted into the Berklee Global Jazz Institute Workshop at the Newport Jazz Festival and was included, under a nomination from Michelle Dorrance, in the December 2017 issue of Dance Spirit magazine as one of the dancers to look for in the next generation of tap dance. Jabu Graybeal is a touring star member of Scott Bradlee’s Postmodern Jukebox and 1/2 of East Coast based music duo “SUMMERZOVR”. Jabu is currently appearing on Season 19 of America’s Got Talent.