Draft:Erini

Eirini "Erini " Tornesaki (Greek: Ειρήνη "Ερήνη" Τορνεσάκι) is a Greek singer and former Cirque Du Soleil vocalist. She toured with Cirque Du Soleil from 2014-2017 as the only vocalist in the show "Kurios" and appeared in 1,074 performances. She is currently signed to Minos EMI in Greece and Ropeadope in the U.S and plans to release her debut album in June 2024.

Early Life and Education
Erini was born in Heraklion, Crete in Greece on July 23, 1991 to a musical family. As a descendant of Greek-Anatolian refugees, preserving her musical heritage was important and she was introduced to the musical Greek-Anatolian tradition by her mother. Throughout her childhood she was involved in music, playing piano and cello and performing with her hometown's string orchestra and choir. In 2007, Erini attained first place at the 13th Pancretan Singing Competition.

At the age of 18, Erini moved from Crete to the United Kingdom to pursue her studies in Contemporary Vocals at the British and Irish Institute of Modern Music (BIMM). While there, she performed with Amy Winehouse's band, James Bay and Barry Manilow.

2014-2017: Cirque Du Soleil
After going through a rigorous auditioning process for over a year, Erini was selected to tour with Cirque du Soleil in their show "Kurios" where she interpreted the role of "Chanteuse de Rue" (Street Singer). She toured North America over a three year period and performed in 1,074 performances from 2014-2017.

2018-2021: Berklee and Teaching
Upon finishing her tour with Cirque du Soleil, Erini was accepted into the prestigious master's program at the Berklee Global Jazz Institute which she completed in 2018. A couple of months after graduating, she was offered a position to teach at the Berklee College of Music where she has been working since in addition to her career as a singer. Her first single "Korasion Etragoudage" was released in 2018 and went viral in the Greek community, amassing over 1 million views on Erini's Facebook page.

2022-Present: Debut Album
In 2022, Erini was awarded the honor of the Mass Cultural Council Fellowship in traditional arts in recognition of her efforts to preserve the cultural heritage of the Greek-Anatolian traditional music. In May 2023, Erini performed in a sold-out concert in New York and in October 2023, Erini performed at the WOMEX Festival in A Coruña, Spain. On April 3, 2024, Erini and Minos EMI announced on their Instagram pages that her first single off her debut album, "Menexedes Kai Zoumpoulia", will be released on April 19.