(NEW BRUNSWICK, NJ) -- Mason Gross School of the Arts is set to host a live concert by Nashville-based acoustic singer-songwriter AJAYE on Thursday, October 1, 2026 from from 7:30pm to 9:00pm. The free concert of original music, which will also include a short performance by a Rutgers music student, singer-songwriter Sam Tunkel, will take place at the intimate Victoria J. Mastrobuono Theater, part of the Mason Gross Performing Arts Center on the Douglass Campus.
No tickets are required, but attendees must register for the event.
The Canada-born AJAYE, often compared to musicians such as Brandi Carlile and Patty Griffin, is touring with her latest album, Silverline (Live at The Henhouse). She has completed four European tours, has performed at venues such as The Bluebird Cafe, 3rd & Lindsley, and The Listening Room, and her music has been featured in Rolling Stone Australia. As AJAYE describes it, she spends her time in Nashville "fitting the truth into a three-minute package."
During the week leading up to the concert, AJAYE will serve as an artist-in-residence at Mason Gross, stepping in as a guest lecturer in the Music Department's "Digital Audio Composition" course and leading a student songwriters' circle.
"My career has led me down a lot of different paths, shaped by all kinds of influences along the way," says AJAYE, who earned a BFA degree in Theatre Performance from Simon Fraser University. "My background as a fine arts graduate is one part of that journey, but I've also learned that inspiration can come from unexpected places, and part of being an artist is staying open enough to notice it. I hope sharing some of my road encourages students to trust their own path, stay connected to the work, and recognize that there is no one way to build a life in the creative arts."
Mason Gross presents this concert in collaboration with Instrumental Opportunity Foundation, a nonprofit devoted to expanding access to music education for New Jersey middle and high school students. While AJAYE's concert kicks off the Rutgers–New Brunswick Homecoming & Family Weekend, this Thursday-evening live event is open to all.
Mason Gross dean Michael Kim says this kind of collaboration is a natural extension of the school's mission.
"Visiting artists bring the professional creative world directly into our classrooms and studios," Kim says, "exposing students to new perspectives, possibilities, and creative paths. These encounters can be transformative, expanding a student's sense of what is possible in their own artistic life. That exchange—between established artists and the next generation of creative voices—is at the heart of what we want Mason Gross to be."
Mason Gross fourth-year music education student Sam Tunkel is set to open for AJAYE, performing original music on guitar. The singer-songwriter has appeared at several events and venues across New Jersey, such as the annual Light of Day WinterFest concert in Asbury Park and Crossroads in Garwood.
"It's awesome to see someone like AJAYE, a songwriter from Nashville, come to a place like Mason Gross," Tunkel says. ". . . It's a great opportunity for students to. . . learn more about the modern music business and how it works."
As for his approach to the concert on October 1, Tunkel says: "I prefer not to think of live performance as something so serious. It's a bond with an artist and their audience, and it's a dialogue that they have through the songs."
The Victoria J. Mastrobuono Theater is part of the Mason Gross Performing Arts Center on Rutgers University's Douglass Campus, at 87 George Street in New Brunswick, NJ. More information is available at masongross.rutgers.edu/events.
Plan your visit: Secure your free parking. Register for the concert.
Mason Gross School of the Arts is a vibrant community of artists and scholars committed to pursuing excellence, innovation, and inclusivity. Its mission is to create socially relevant art, foster diverse programming and curricula, cultivate community partnerships, and advance the arts through teaching, creative activity, advocacy, and research that contributes to the public good. Comprising more than 1,000 undergraduate and graduate students across programs in music, theater, dance, filmmaking, art, and design, Mason Gross is housed within Rutgers–New Brunswick, a premier Big Ten research university that serves some 50,000 students and is the flagship campus of Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey.
Instrumental Opportunity Foundation aims to use the power of music education to uplift students to their highest potential and provide students with the framework for a lifetime of academic, professional, and personal success. At Instrumental, we believe that access to music education can unlock a world of opportunities for our youth, regardless of the career path they choose to follow. Music programs teach kids more than just how to play an instrument—they help impart long-term skills that can positively impact their personal lives, academic careers, and professional journeys.
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