We recently connected with Teddy Eisenberg and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Teddy, thanks for joining us today. Can you tell us the backstory behind how you came up with the idea?

The idea to start Eisenberg Productions was inspired by the influence of legendary Cleveland concert promoters Belkin Productions and prior work as studio manager at Suma Recording. My favorite thing about the job was scouting exciting new acts to come in and record. Once the recording process was complete, however, I often found myself thinking that the work had just begun, brainstorming next steps to market the project and help it find a receptive audience. I have gotten to pursue this work in my ongoing project management for entertainment and media company Jestertainment, and my production company has served as a natural outgrowth and augmentation of this work.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

My animating passion for music began in childhood, rooted in my family’s deep influence. My grandfather, Rabbi Frederick Eisenberg, developed a reputation as one of premiere concert bootleggers in the United States Air Force while serving as a chaplain. His hundreds of single microphone recordings of Benny Goodman, Stan Kenton, Frank Sinatra and others attracted the admiration of many—including Columbia Records, who featured his recording of the Dave Brubeck Quartet’s “Out of Nowhere” on 1954’s ‘Jazz Goes To College’—and ire of jazz clubs from Biloxi to Chicago. He hosted his own radio show, ‘Think In,’ and his expansive record collection and stereo set up provided an indispensable early education. I own original pressings of The Smiths’ early discography because he, in his mid-50s, saw fit to purchase them, and aspire to his level of awareness and intellectual curiosity every day.

My father, Rabbi Matthew Eisenberg, continued this education, introducing me to innumerable classic rock and soul albums, including Spirit’s ‘Twelve Dreams Of Dr. Sardonicus,’ which kickstarted my abiding love for psychedelic music. We still share music back and forth every week, particularly on Shabbat, in what has become one of my most cherished family traditions.

While attending Case Western Reserve University, I immediately began to work at WRUW-FM 91.1 Cleveland, seduced by the station’s freeform format and expansive vinyl collection. I’ve been a DJ there ever since, serving on the station’s executive board as recruitment director, public relations director and business manager over the course of my undergraduate career and booking its annual Studio-A-Rama concert festival from 2015 to 2018. While at Case, I also began writing for the university’s student newspaper, ‘The Observer,’ assembling diverse weekly playlists and reviewing albums in what would lay the groundwork for my current blog and radio show The Eisenberg Review.

In 2016, inspired by my work at The City Club of Cleveland, I co-founded the nonprofit Sixth City Sounds with my now-wife, pop artist Chayla Hope, and Jeanette Sangston. Dedicated to amplifying Cleveland’s music community as a regional economic asset, the organization fostered B2B opportunities with its CLE Music Shelf retail program, hosted monthly networking events, and put together pop-up concerts with Destination Cleveland and the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority over its three years of operation. During this time, I also began managing Chayla’s band Seafair, raising the group’s regional profile with bookings at festivals Brite Winter and InCuya.

While managing Seafair, I met the team of engineers behind the restoration of Suma Recording Studio, which I joined and managed from 2019 to 2021 following the band’s dissolution. Operational again in 2021 after extensive renovation, Suma’s legacy dates back to the storied days of Cleveland Recording Company—which included hit records from Grand Funk Railroad and Wild Cherry’s “Play That Funky Music”— and since 1977, has hosted artists ranging from The Black Keys, James Gang, Michael Stanley Band, Pere Ubu and Chayla Hope, whose solo debut ‘Damn, Feelings’ was recorded there and released in 2022.

Since leaving Suma in 2021, I have worked with Jestertainment to manage the day-to-day operations of its independent record label, manage its artist roster and help produce its web series Happy Hour Sessions. Eisenberg Productions was formed in 2023 as a natural outgrowth of this work. I provide artist management, music curation and promotional services for a diverse roster of clients that include Americana folk act American Darling, pop artist Chayla Hope, music sync company Other Animal, mix engineer Jim Stewart and alternative rock band The Sublets.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

I feel my purpose in life is to help connect people with music that they’ll love. Few things have the connective, transporting power that music has and it is an honor to be able to share that experience with so many. Life is better with the right soundtrack.

Are there any books, videos or other content that you feel have meaningfully impacted your thinking?

The Jewish text ‘Pirkei Avot’ has always served as an anchoring philosophical force in my life, particularly Rabbi Tarfon’s teaching: “You are not obligated to complete the work, but neither are you free to desist from it.”

Contact Info:

• Website: teddyeisenberg.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/teddyeisenberg/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/teddyeisenberg/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/teddyeisenberg/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/teddyeisenberg

Image Credits
All photos credit Lindsey Poyar, expect as noted. Coffee photo credit Chayla Hope.