Adam James Meets Robi Botos

A First-Time Collision of Two International Jazz Forces! Adam James (vocals) Robi Botos (piano) Norbert Botos (drums) and Ben Dwyer (bass) Some meetings feel inevitable. Others feel like fate tapping you on the shoulder. On Saturday April 4, Hugh’s Room Live hosts the first-ever full concert collaboration between two of Canada’s most formidable jazz exports: pianist Robi Botos and vocalist Adam James. It’s not a pairing. It’s a detonation. The origin story? A Toronto salon in 2025 — the kind of room where reputations are checked at the door and only the music matters. Jaymz Bee, impresario and instigator, leaned into his old friend Robi and said: “I know you rarely play with singers, but this guy, Adam James — he’s the real deal.” They did one song. Just one. And suddenly the air changed. What followed was less rehearsal than revelation — an immediate mutual admiration society, two masters recognizing the voltage in the other. Now, for the first time, they expand that spark into a full evening. ROBI BOTOS “When it comes to pianists, if there was a game called Jazzopoly, Robi would be Boardwalk!” – Jaymz Bee Robi Botos was winner of the TD Grand Jazz Award at the 2012 Montreal International Jazz Festival and also winner of the Montreux Jazz Festival Piano Competition (2004). Born in Hungary and immigrating to Canada in 1988, Botos quickly built a reputation in Toronto that spread worldwide. The last protégé of the legendary Oscar Peterson, Robi carries that lineage forward with ferocious technique and lyrical soul. He has performed with a who’s-who of jazz elite, from Pat LaBarbera to Molly Johnson, while leading his own acclaimed ensembles. Nearly a dozen recordings later, he continues to astonish audiences with performances that feel both volcanic and precise; intellect meeting instinct at 88 keys. ADAM JAMES “I’ve seen a lot of guys play Sinatra. Adam’s the best!” – Quincy Jones “One of my favourite singers and entertainers... anywhere!” – Jaymz Bee Adam James doesn’t impersonate Sinatra — he inhabits the architecture of great song. Since 1999, when Sinatra’s daughters chose him to lead their first theatrical tribute of their father’s life at the Montreal Casino, James has become one of the definitive interpreters of the American songbook. Tina Sinatra personally selected him to portray Frank in Sinatra: Remembered. He went on to perform in one of the longest running off-Broadway shows in Our Sinatra, London’s West End production of The Rat Pack, and the American tour of Forever Swing, where he stepped into the spotlight following Michael Bublé. He has opened the Detroit Symphony Pops season to five sold-out houses and shared stages with Ray Charles, Tony Bennett and Liza Minnelli. Now based in Hollywood, James balances international touring with composing and producing music for film, television and even the Olympics. Toronto remains his second home, where family ties run deep and jazz devotees have proudly claimed him as their own. Adam has recorded for Vesuvius Music Inc. (VMI) on their Music for Secret Agents album and has a new VMI single coming out March 4 called “What People Will Do For Paper”. Pre-Save now at: https://ffm.to/adam-james-what-people-will-do-for-paper