Advance Ticket sale extended by one week until February 3rd! This amazing weekend of music, food and culture is not to be missed. Limited Sponsorships available for residents of San Diego County, The Valley, Soref Campuses, Long Beach.

Learn More on the Facebook Event.

Before there were a bevy of imitators, Jewlicious Festival originated a unique blend of programming music and fun, that simply is unlike anything else at this price. Thanks to very generous donors, we can offer the Festival for a fee that is simply a steal. Everyone will be there – will you?

In the time since the first Stubb’s album, Matisyahu has sprouted his wings and built a musical ecosystem way beyond anything that we could have imagined.

I have the privilege to be closely following Matisyahu, going to his shows, and experiencing his musical growth and journey. Even with front-row seat, I could have predicted how amazing this album would be. It’s not a greatest hits album, it’s not a nostalgia or revival album, its a shot across the bow of cookie-cutter corporate sameness and predictable genre-locked tonality. It’s a revolutionary album. Dub Trio and Matisyahu are brilliant, aerobic, agile, free flowing across the sky of sound and expressions. Live At Stubb’s 2 is the most compelling album of his career.

But you cannot listen to it once on little headphones or a laptop speaker system. To full appreciate Stubb’s 2 you need massive sound, three or more listenings, an an open mind. If you can line that up, your musical world will be totally grateful.

Gone are the soft reggae lines, the linear, the expected. Matisyahu’s sound is more intense, holistic, and full of unexpected twists, turns, and flips. Just try to catch your breath.

Matisyahu will be doing a massive tour this summer, starting next month in Alabama at Hang Out Festival. In addition to downloading Stubbs 2, hopefully you will have a chance to catch this incredible performer soon.

PS- We wish Tahlia and Matisyahu a hearty Mazal Tov on the birth of a baby boy!

Our annual Jewlicious Festival is just a few days away and the Jewlicious crew is hard at work getting everything ready for the arrival of hundreds of Festival goers from across the US and California. Last minute prep involves putting together the schedule – which is available both online and, if you follow the instructions, on your fave smartphone! Well… ok on your iPhone for sure, I don’t know about those others… Yeah, that’s a messed up, world’s colliding collection of speakers if ever I saw one, if’n you know what I mean… check it out. We also have a great collection of Festival swag, all printed on the finest sweatshop free, made in LA American Apparel cotton. You just can’t beat that stuff. Starting tomorrow folks are going to start rolling in at a greater and greater pace. Thank goodnesss our intern has a Mercedes. Our other intern has a Lexus. I have a mountain bike. I fucking hate LA.

But I do love the Jewlicious Festival! Once again, Matisyahu will be in attendance, along with indie folk rockster Leerone, Soulfarm, Acharit Hayamim, the comedy stylings of the Sklar Brothers and even Kosha Dillz will be performing with a camera in tow. Interesting, eh?

But what really makes it all worthwhile is working with all the different people that make Jewlicious what it is. Y’all know who you are, our secret arsenal that make creating the impossible seem easy. I am humbled. Jewlicious is going to rock… tickets are still available. Be there

Leerone is the musical equivalent of an ice cream sundae with a vodka chaser. On her Facebook page she describes her music as “Indie-folk-rock-experimental-theatrical-feisty-music-that-comes-from-a-real-place”.

Over the course of her inspired career, Leerone has triumphantly upended pop conventions while hewing to the great singer-songwriter traditions of her Los Angeles forebears (think Tom Waits, Joni Mitchell and Randy Newman, to name a distinguished few). Now, on the heels of her two EPs, Leerone delivers her most vivid, most wide-ranging recording to date, Imaginary Biographies, wherein the LA singer-songwriter employs her formidable composing, performing and arranging skills to further advance a fiercely independent artistic vision.

About the video:

Los Angeles singer/songwriter Leerone once again elevates her artistry to rarefied new heights with her shudder-inducing new music video, Empty Houses. Conceived by Leerone and produced by LA videographer/animator Hank Friedmann—the same boy genius who oversaw Leerone’s 2008 video “Care For Some Whiskey?”—Empty Houses masterfully employs fantasy and gothic sensibilities in support of Leerone and Hank’s uncompromising creative ambitions.

The new video imagines Leerone as the sole attendee at an old woman’s funeral. Courtesy of Friedmann and his animated sorcery, viewers are transported away from the graveyard through the spirit-haunted halls of the deceased woman’s mansion, where Leerone glimpses scenes from the woman’s tragic life. These playback images prompt Leerone to reflect on her own life. Eerie, picturesque, and gorgeously realized, Empty Houses makes a poignant visual statement about fate, life, choices and possibilities.

Empty Houses is Leerone’s third foray into music video and short film. Her 2008 debut video “Care For Some Whiskey?” finds the singer sharing the spotlight with a cast of endearingly freakish Claymation friends. Leerone’s subsequent clip “To Fill the Void” was directed by Claire Carré (Brett Dennen, Sia, Rainer Maria), depicting Leerone as a wistful dishwasher at a roadside diner. In all, the three videos serve as a audio-visual complement to Leerone’s 2008 CD, “Imaginary Biographies.”

As actors, Randy and Jason Sklar have guest starred in many TV shows, including an Emmy Award winning episode of HBO’s Curb YourEnthusiasm, the cult FX hit “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, as well as Adult Swim’s Childrens’ Hospital.

They starred as conjoined twins in a memorable episode of Grey’s Anatomy and as warring agents on HBO’s Entourage. Of the Entourage episode, Entertainment Weekly television critic Paul Katz wrote of their turn, “in the hands of comedic masters, The Sklar Brothers, they made it soar.”

They’ve also appeared in such films as Touchstone’s, Wild Hogs, and Fox Atomic’s, The Comebacks. In November of 2006, Randy and Jason wrapped their 4th and final season of their critically acclaimed comedy series, Cheap Seats on ESPN Classic. They also wrote and appeared in a regular segment on ESPN’s SportsCenter called, “The Bracket” from 2008 to 2009.

In addition they regularly fill in as guest hosts for Jim Rome on his popular nationally syndicated radio show. As stand up comedians, they recorded their second half hour Comedy Central Presents in November 2009 and it premiered in March of 2010.

Neil Strausse of the New York Times said of the Sklars, “Their comedy accepts the reality of being twins but does not use it as a crutch. Instead,” noted Strauss, “they work with their physical and mental similarities and correspondences, their status as imperfect carbon copies of each other. In their comedy, the straight man is often an echo.

Randy and Jason currently reside in Los Angeles, where they record their new weekly sports comedy podcast Sklarbro Country for earwolf.com.

Entrance to the Comedy Stage comes with every weekend festival pass.

Catch up with the Sklar Brothers
SKLARBRO COUNTRY PODCAST: catch up on holiday shows www.earwolf.com
WEB SERIES “HELD UP” now Available on iTunes
CHEAP SEATS DVD in the works more info to come

Marissa’s duties include supervising a nationwide network of Jewlicious Campus organizers on two dozen campuses, recruiting new organizers and coaching our current team. On any given day Marissa might be in touch with campuses in California, Maryland and Arizona.

Marissa is also spearheading the creation of a new Online Campus Organizer Manual for the network. “We are taking this manual we have, making an online one that can grow with our network, and be added to by our team members. It’s pretty amazing,” added Marissa.

“Marissa is about the most positive and friendly person I think I have met,” said one a new campus organizer at a west coast campus. “She tackles everything with passion, and can-do spirit.”

But don’t confuse her positive and chill attitude with complacency.

Marissa sees the situation on college campuses where most Jewish students don’t get involved with Jewish groups as a major area that needs repair. She cares deeply about making sure that students have access to great programs and people.

Even when she is not at work, Marissa organizes massive Shabbat Dinners sometimes with Birthright Next funding and sometimes not.

Bringing young Jewish people together is what makes Marissa happy, and why Jewlicious is honored and thrilled to have her on the team.

If you want to be in touch with Marissa you can find her on Facebook, call her at the office, or send her an email to marissa dot jewlicious at gmail dot com.

[cross-posted from jewliciousfestival.com]

There are lots of things you can do this Sunday (sleep in, go to Ikea, ponder the irony of saying “l’chaim” to life before we drink if drinking kills brain cells), but there is one thing you can do TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE THIS SUNDAY, OCTOBER 24th: TIKKUNFEST. Your contribution will change the way Angelenos see the Chood (Pico Robertson) and revive our beautiful neighborhood- all with just a shovel and a microphone. And, if you volunteer for at least 3 hours, you will get FREE admission to the after party with hundreds of other volunteers!

1. Click “YES” on Facebook!

2. Invite friends on Facebook or use more primitive tools of communication such as calling, texting, smoke signals, or if absolutely necessary, actual human-to-human invites (warning: may cause social behavior)

3. Join us to pass out flyers and talk to businesses on Wednesday October 20th, 9am-1pm…email noah@lagreenmile.com

4. Volunteer to help paint planters on Thursday October 21st, 5pm-8pm…email noah@lagreenmile

5. Email or pass out Tikkunfest flyers to your friends, family and enemies (mostly because it annoys them). Let them know they can bring their unwanted electronics, old clothes, and extra food to Tikkunfest even if they can’t stay the whole day. (We have them in PicoRobertson or Century City.

6. If you know someone who would like to sponsor a cleaner and greener Pico, have them email Noah@lagreenmile.com

7. Email us and ask questions if you are confused. We’d like to know why you haven’t clicked “YES” yet… my therapist calls this “sharing our feelings.”

8. Blog, post and add to calendars all over the web, from the LA weekly to LA Times

9. Did I mention change your Facebook reply to “YES?”

10. Don’t be late…volunteers are needed between 9am – 11:59pm. Let us know how you can help. The volunteer schedule is below:

Shift 1: 9am – 1pm Setup, distribute materials, registration, security, block captains meeting, decorations, food setup, security

Shift 2: 1pm – 5pm Cleanup, gardening, planting, graffiti removal, painting, litter pickup, sweeping

Shift 3: 5pm – 8pm Party maintenance, food, water, cards for troops table, security, serving, misc needs

Shift 4: 8pm – 12pm Party cleanup. (most likely done by 10pm)

Day 1 of Camp Jewlicious has just concluded – and what a day it’s been! First, a word about the venue. Camp Jewlicious is taking place at the Brandeis Bardin Campus of the American Jewish University. This lush, verdant, 3000 acre facility located just 45 minutes north of Los Angeles is the largest piece of Jewish owned property outside of Israel. Frankly, it’s overwhelming. Yes, there’s horseback riding, and mountain biking, hikes galore and swimming pools. The buildings are well appointed, the staff friendly and helpful and there are friggin peacocks roaming the grounds! Prior to my arrival here I saw photos but nothing compares to actually being here. I spent my first half hour at Camp Jewlicious walking around like a stunned slack jawed imbecile.

Our Jewlicious crew has been hard at work for the past several months planning and putting together this event and we have over 100 registered attendees. We’re hoping that this will become yet another signature event, like the Jewlicious Festival (which incidentally began 6 years ago, also with just over 100 attendees, and has grown phenomenally since). Camp Jewlicious will offer its participants a positive Jewish experience in an insanely gorgeous setting. Of course I will keep you all updated but today, Camp Jewlicious participants enjoyed horseback riding, swimming, basketball, bonding experiences like capture the flag and a campfire singalong with Rav Shmuel. Tomorrow’s program includes Bibliyoga sessions with ROI Community and Jewlicious Festival alum Marcus Freed, sessions on grass roots community organizing, more fun and games and of course, Sabbath stuff.

So yeah. Pretty bad ass eh?

Yuri “the boxing rabbi” Foreman fights with the Star of David embroidered onto his shorts. The super welterweight world champion and rabbinical scholar will defend his title against Miguel Cotto this Saturday. But not before he’s properly observed the Sabbath.
At 9:15pm, after the sun goes down, an NYPD escort will drive with Foreman to the world-famous Yankee Stadium (the fight will start at 11:15pm)… Until then, Foreman can’t fight or even travel. Foreman is the first Orthodox Jew to win a world championship since Jackie (Kid) Berg in 1932.

So this Saturday night we will be rooting for him to defeat Miguel Cotto. The question is where?

One of the problems is that while Yuri’s fight at Yankee Stadium itself will not be on Shabbos, it will still be Shabbos here in LA. The HBO coverage begins at 7:30 and certainly there must be a fight or two, but that still leaves Yuri’s fight as going on as Shabbos ends. So what is a Yuri Fan in LA to do who can’t fly to NYC for the fight, and stay in an RV at the foot of Yankee Stadium for Shabbos?

Get invited to an exclusive Seudat Shlishit gathering, that finishes with evening prayers and a post-Shabbos, DVR-recorded showing of the fight on a massive 60″ TV.

Thankfully just such a gathering will take place at the home of a local TV producer. Big LCD TVs. That sort of thing.

We hope to be able to celebrate Yuri’s victory on Saturday night here on the blog, and wish him a safe, and Jewlicious boxing match!

GO YURI, HATZLACHA RABBA, SHALOM!

Jewlicious Festival Alumni (left-right) Eli Wikelman (Challah For Hunger), Sarah Lefton (G-dcast), and Shawn Landres (Jumpstart) enjoying the reception in honor of Jewish Heritage Month at the White House with future Jewlicious Presenter Ambassador Michael Oren. Other Jewlicious Alum spotted in Shawn’s photos include Josh Neuman (Heeb) and Aaron Bisman (JDub), looking very snazzy. In fact, I think that we will require all presenters in the future to dress so snazzy. Major yashar koach to Shawn for the Lichtenstein inspired tie, and the photo of Jewish Federations of North America President and CEO Jerry Silverman getting an autograph from the man that everyone wanted to meet— Hall of Fame pitcher Sandy Kofax. As the President noted in his opening joke:

We’ve got senators and representatives. We’ve got Supreme Court justices and successful entrepreneurs, rabbinical scholars, Olympic athletes — and Sandy Koufax. Sandy and I actually have something in common — we are both lefties. He can’t pitch on Yom Kippur; I can’t pitch.

Read the President’s remarks here on the White House site.

Jewlicious Festival presenter, and undefeated World Champ, Yuri Foreman, will make his network TV talk show debut tonight on ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel Live, tonight.

HOLLYWOOD, CALIF. (April 29, 2010) — Undefeated World Boxing Association (WBA) super welterweight champion and future rabbi YURI FOREMAN will make his U.S. network television debut on ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel Live, Tonight! Thursday, April 29 (12:05 a.m. ET/PT)

Foreman will then jet back to Brooklyn to resume training for his first title defense, against three-time world champion and the pride or Puerto Rico Miguel Cotto. Cotto vs. Foreman will headline “Stadium Slugfest” — the inaugural brawl at Yankee Stadium, Saturday, June 5. It will be televised live on HBO World Championship Boxing, beginning at 10:15 p.m. ET / 7:15 p.m. PT.

Here is Yuri at Jewlicious:

This year’s theme is the 150th Birthday of Theodore Herzl – hence the huge legs on this poster!

Come visit us at the JEWlICIOUS FESTIVAL TENT for a free gift, Jewlicous T-Shirts and other cool swag.
Three stages – Main Stage, Youth Stage, and Kids Stage have entertainment all day long.The festival will also include rides, a petting zoo, a fashion show, skydivers, entertainment on the children’s and teen stages as well as 150 vendor and food booths, including a variety of kosher food.

The 18th Annual
Israel’s 62nd Independence Day Festival
Los Angeles
http://israelfestival.com/

Sunday, April 25, 2010, 10:00 AM – 7:00 PM
Woodley Park
Tickets start at $8

Last weekend proved to be yet another epic year for Jewlicious. For those who have never been or never heard, Jewlicious is a three-day festival at the Long Beach JCC that happens every February, bringing Jewish people together from all over the country for music, food and chutzpah! This is my fifth year. It’s possible that I will be a lifer.

Caroline Kessler in In The Moment provides the first of two reviews:

There were about 450 people at Shabbat dinner that night–nearly everyone joined in for Shalom Aleichem. At the head of our table was the infamous Matisyahu. As we were breaking and passing the challah, our table ran out. Our friend Marc yelled, “Hey Matis! Throw me a piece of challah!”

Miraculously, he did. There was an exuberance in the air that tonight, and I think a lot of it came from using our voices at a volume that we don’t normally practice. There were so many different kinds/types/labels of Jew there–and to see everyone raise their voices in the same song was something bordered on extraordinary. The next morning, (Saturday), there was a reggae-inspired Reform service. I missed it to attend Marcus Freed’s Shabbat Strength sequence–and there was music even in the heavy breath of everyone in the small exercise room, the stomping of our feet on the floor when Marcus said, “Just let your body play,” and there was music in our chanting of ’shalom.’

Over a week later, I still have something that my friend Bri taught me on the trip: kol ha’olam kulo, gesher tzar m’od, v’ha ikar lo l’fached klal, which translates to ‘the entire world is a narrow bridge, but the main thing is not to fear.’ I love the translation, but what I love even more is singing the song all the way to John Wayne Airport, all the way back to Pittsburgh.

One of the nation’s hottest rising stand-up headliners, Eric Schwartz aka Smooth-E, is a comedian, rapper, and MC. His music have appeared on “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno,” BET’s “Comic View,” Showtime’s “White Boyz in the Hood,” Mun2, SiTV and more. This bespectacled rhyme spitter wears multiple hats, writing, producing and performing countless characters in his songs and videos. Pulling off funny, authentic-sounding parodies is a tough nut to crack, but Smooth-E cracks away, appealing across the board from hip-hop heads to soccer moms.

http://smoothe.tv/

Kira Soltanovich (Star of Girls Behaving Badly)

A regular for four seasons on the Oxygen and Nationally syndicated show, Girls Behaving Badly, Kira has also appeared on such shows as Jimmy Kimmel Live, 3rd Rock From The Sun, and The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. She has been a winner, finalist and semi-finalist of several comedy competitions, including Comedy Central’s Laugh Riots, NBC’s Last Comic Standing, The Cape Town International Comedy Festival, the Boston Comedy Festival, and the Seattle International Comedy Festival.

http://www.myspace.com/kiracomedy

Simcha Levenberg

Born in Washington DC and bred in New Jersey, Simcha is our only comedian who also doubles as a Rabbi. A self-dubbed spiritual gangster, he draws out the comedic side of sprituality, G-d, world religion, meditation, drugs as well as the counter-culture, music, and everything written by Tom Robbins. We are happy to welcome Simcha back to the festival to once again press the reset button on all stereotypes: Jewish, Rabbinic or otherwise.

http://simchalevenberg.com/

Robin Reiser

Robin Reiser is a stand-up comic and super model. The modeling career is really going badly so she is now a writer. To keep up appearances she writes in full runway make up and does an outfit change every fifteen minutes. http://www.myspace.com/robinreiser

Lizzy Cooperman

Lizzy Cooperman has been featured on “The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson”, and has been featured on NBC’s “Last Comic Standing”, MTV’s “Most Valuable Players”, and The History Channel’s “History of the Joke: Part One”.

She is a winner of the Laugh Across America Contest and her stand-up comedy has also been featured in “New Faces” and “Dating It” at the Just For Laughs Festival in Montreal. Lizzy was a finalist at The Las Vegas Comedy Festival, and featured in “Best of the Fest” at the New York Underground Comedy Festival. http://www.myspace.com/lizzycooperman

Line-up is subject to change.

An if you have not purchased your ticket — do so before the costs goes up on Jan 31!

This benefit will not only support Jewlicious, Jewlicious Festival, JConnectLA, Shabbat Tent, and other programs, but also introduce what we do to America’s second largest Jewish community in a way we have never done before.

We will be honoring David Suissa, founder of Olam.org, columnist for the Jewish Journal, and one of Jewish LA’s great personalities.

This event is a tikkun on the normal benefit dinner. There will be no rubber chicken, open seating, complimentary bar, casino games, silent auction, food from around the world, and desserts from the finest dessert company in Los Angeles. All our performers, vendors, and organizers are doing this for free or for song – because they know that this is an important fundraiser, and want to support our work.

Even if you cannot make this event – consider making a donation, a tribute, or sponsor someone else to go.

On Wednesday, January 20, at 6:30pm, we will celebrate Jewish unity with music, comedy, and poetry at an unforgettable, delicious, cabaret-style event at LA’s famous El Rey Theater. This Night of Unity is our first ever Gala fundraiser. Please join in our effort to make this a night to remember while helping to raise funds to keep Jewlicious Festival, JConnect and our other projects going.

We are honoring DAVID SUISSA with the Jewish Unity Award. Suissa, an advertising executive and LA Jewish Journal Columnist, is founder of OLAM magazine, Meals4Israel.co, Ads4Israel.com and the newly launched OLAM.org. Suissa speaks up for justice, Jews, and israel, bridging communities and cultures. He embodies Jewish unity in bringing together the many parts of our community to solve problems and provide mutual support.

There will be great entertainment at this cabaret-style event, headlined by a special acoustic performance by Grammy Nominated, Gold Record Recording Artist MATISYAHU.

Our Night of Unity Honorary Dinner Chair is STANLEY GOLD, the outgoing chairman of the board, Jewish Federation of Los Angeles

This is no rubber chicken fundraiser dinner. There will be an speak-easy style Casino, Silent Auction, live music all evening, wine and a wide variety of delicious food. For VIP ticket holders there will be bottle service and complimentary drinks as well.

Special appearances have been confirmed by Craig Taubman, Rhoda Weissman, David Sachs, Adam Weinberg, Marcus Freed and others! It is a snazzy night, so dress code is – Black Tie Optional

You can buy tickets, or make a tribute – tickets and tributes start at $180. We have a few sponsorship opportunities for individuals or companies that would like to participate in this event. Please contact us as soon as possible – we have only a few left.

*$50 of ticket cost is not tax deductible.

HOST COMMITTEE
Tom and Jill Barad Brett Barenholtz Stanley & Joyce Black Michael Borkow Etan and Emily Cohen Brad and Amy Conroy Daniel Eisenstadt Rachel Ephron Yosi and Wendy Finn Noah Flom Selwyn & Glynis Gerber Stephen Grynberg Bob Hale Josh and Stefanie Kaplan Mellissa Lewkowicz James and Debbie Lustig Nick Meyer Tahlia Miller Larry and Carol Mizel Courtney Mizel Maxine Morris Dr. Sharon Musher Gal & Rabbi Elissa Ben Naim Harry & Dorit Nelson Mark and Renee Phillips Sheri Porath Rockwell Roz and Jerry Rothstein David and Judy Sachs Dr. Rami and Sofia Sadeghi Evan Schlessinger Lou Sokolovsky Alan and Lisa Stern Dubby Teichman Sari Tuschman Gary and Dana Wexler Shawn Landres Joshua Avedon