John Forté

Velvet-voiced Brooklyn singer-songwriter and producer Forté cowrote much of the Fugees' The Score, and his own albums have featured Herbie Hancock and Carly Simon. Forté was sentenced to a 14-year prison term for drug trafficking in 2000, but was commuted by President Bush in 2008 (Simon was a key campaigner), and last year released the album water light sound. He's about to embark on an extensive tour of Russia, so tonight's venture is titled "From Brooklyn to Russia with Love!"