“They’ve been well-received,” says Friedberg. “We posted one yesterday, and I think we’ll hit 1,000 views. The exposure is great, and I love that my Facebook likes have gone up by like 200 a day, but I’m focused on raising money for the Greater Cleveland Food Bank. I’ve worked with a lot of kids who rely on school to get fed. I personally know a few kids who will be suffering from this. I want families to have some activity and entertainment, but I hope they see there’s a page where they can contribute to the Greater Cleveland Foodbank. We’re currently at $500, which is great.”
Earlier this year, Friedberg, who records and performs as Jesse Jukebox, released his third kids’ album, Awesome! Produced by Grammy winner Dean Jones, the album is, as Friedberg puts it, “beautifully flawed, just like people are.”
Friedberg, who graduated from Berklee College of Music with a major in songwriting, recorded his first kids’ album back in 2012.
“I’ve been interested in children’s music off and on for ten years,” he says. “It became my primary focus for the past two years. Making songs for kids is a lot of fun. In the writing and recording process, I’m working harder than I did when I was writing and recording songs for my band. To me, if it’s a kids’ song, it has to sound awesome. It has to sound like the greatest think they’ve ever heard. That’s what I’m trying to do with every song I wrote. I have such high standards of what it needs to be. I love that. I’ve always been passionate about working with kids and being part of their growth and development.”
Friedberg teaches interactive early childhood music classes in Ohio City, at the Mandel JCC in Beachwood, and at synagogues and preschools throughout the greater Cleveland area. He also works with inner city kids in the Notes for Notes program at the Boys & Girls Clubs of Cleveland.
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This article appears in Mar 11-17, 2020.
