A B O U T J E S S E F R I E D B E R G
Jesse Friedberg (a.k.a. Jesse Jukebox) is on a mission to inspire children and their parents to be creative, compassionate, free-thinking, and a little bit smarter than he is (which is pretty darn smart). Based out of Cleveland, Ohio, Jesse accomplishes his mission by writing and recording original children’s music. He puts on amusing, thrilling, and interactive live shows that entertain children and grown-ups alike. (Did we mention he is great at talking about himself in third person?)
After graduating from Berklee College of Music, instead of mastering the art of Jazz and shredding guitars, Jesse dedicated his time to writing, recording, and performing fun and catchy children’s music for families.
In 2012, Jesse recorded a children’s album with multi-platinum award-winning producer, Michael Seifert, titled, “Jesse’s Jukebox”. In 2017, he released his follow-up children’s album, “Jesse’s Jukebox: There’s Music Everywhere”. In 2020, he released his third album, “Awesome!”, which he recorded with Grammy award-winning producer, Dean Jones. In 2021, Jesse accepted his invitation to join the Recording Academy. In 2022, Jesse released his fourth album, “Just A Minute” an album comprised entirely of one-minute songs.
Jesse’s passion for working with children led him to receiving his Masters in Early Childhood Education from Ursuline College in 2015. He applies the skills he learned to give high-energy, interactive, early childhood music classes that the whole family gets into.
Jesse is driven by Rock and Roll, The Blues, Batman, Electric guitars, Silliness, Funky Bass Lines, Pizza, Corny jokes, Loud Drums, The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Banjos, Outer Space, and all things awesome.
Jesse is currently working on getting better at writing about himself. (It’s a slow process.)
Top 10 Things I Bet You
Didn’t Know About Me!
I’ve gone skydiving! Here’s the proof! (Heads up: I’m clearly terrified and my face looks pretty crazy when wind is pushing it at 120 MPH).
I have a Beagle/Basset Hound mix named Olive. But I always call her different names, like “Missy Moo”.
My wife and I got married in our backyard.
Jaleel White (AKA Steve Urkel) hung out and got his hair cut in my apartment.
In college, I scored a few scenes for a movie called, “Senior Skip Day”. It got played a lot on Comedy Central.
I’ve met Raffi. He’s an awesome dude.
My top 3 songwriting influences are Pete Townshend, Jeff Tweedy, and Daniel Johnston.
My favorite band is Wilco. I’ve seen them in concert 14 times.
I despise tuna fish. (I can’t get past the smell).
I’ve moved 13 times. Hopefully, I’m staying put for awhile!
FAQS
So, what do you do exactly?
Mom, did you write this question? I am a children’s songwriter and entertainer. I write and record original kids’ music and perform for families and children of all ages! I rock out at both public and private events such as birthday parties, school events, community gatherings, fairs, and any and all in between! I also teach early childhood group music classes and private guitar lessons, too. You can check my calendar to see where to catch my next show!
Will you play at my child’s birthday party?
Totally! I love rocking out at birthday parties! Drop me a line for availability and rates!
What the professionals are saying…
“A self-described goofball that grew up feeling like a misfit learned his lessons well at Berklee and now
speaks to this new generation of goofballs in a language they can understand and appreciate. Feeling like a show music album, as the noise keeps getting louder, an album full of positive messages to the highly impressionable will surely stand out and be welcome. Dissatisfied adults might even get more out of
this kids’ album than the kids will. It’s just the times we’re living in. Killer stuff throughout.”
Chris Spector, Midwest Record
“As a child, Jesse felt misunderstood and different from other kids because of his ADHD. Here, he sets his
sights on making sure that others like him know that they’re not alone, and that there is, in fact, a whole community of similar-feeling kids and adults. This six-song e.p. is all kinds of fun, and the only thing I was disappointed with was its brevity. Jesse sounds a bit like, and sings with the enthusiasm of Jack Black, which is a good thing in my book. The arrangements are snappy and sparse, Awesome and Incredible Shoes stylistically remind me of Violent Femmes. Listen To Your Gut, which implores kids to listen to their inner voice when dealing with difficult situations, is my fave of the set. I like this disc a lot.”
Pop-A-Looza, Album Review
