The Long Version

Jessica Magoch (pronounced ma-GOOCH) pours a glam cocktail of Bourbon Street Swing and Old School Philly Hip Hop. Winner of the Philadelphia Music award for Jazz 2019, The John Lennon Songwriting Contest Song of the Week, Feb 2022, and Top 20 Indie Songs of 2020 by CFAB Radio.

As a self-proclaimed “Bad girl stuck in a good girl’s body,” Jessica writes about life’s conflicting moments: resisting the forbidden lover, an independent woman desperate for her partner’s attention, a body positivity activist who cares about what other people think, staying committed to someone who doesn’t love you anymore, being grounded and wanting to escape, wanting to rebel but knowing you’ll always do the right thing. 

Similarly, her music is a series of conflicts, brooding lyrics against an uptempo swing, a blend of vintage big band swing and old-school rap, 

Jessica grew up in the 1980s in Queens, New York one of five children. Entertaining her Catholic school cafeteria with her rendition of The Big Mac Rap, Beastie Boys and the latest Fresh Prince rhymes consumed most of her time. 

On the flip side, her grandfather was Master of Ceremonies at The Sprocket Club, a dance hall in Brooklyn in the 1930s. When Jessica visited him, she had to turn off the hip-hop and get an education in what he called ‘The Oldtimers’ Music’ – all the great crooners of the day – on his tinny old radio with tinfoil reinforced antennae. 

Hip-hop is a descendent of jazz so they complement each other well. Jessica has been playing piano since she was four, and it is the primary way she starts her compositions.

In 2021, Jessica has teamed up with legendary producer, Joe Nicolo, the nine-time Grammy winner formerly of Columbia Records who has produced for Lauryn Hill, DJ Jazzy Jeff and The Fresh Prince (Will Smith), Bob Dylan, Billy Joel, Wyclef Jean, Kriss Kross, and The Fugees to produce the first single on her album, Trivial Pursuit. 

The remainder of the album is self-produced, recorded, and mixed in her home studio.

She is on a mission to blend the vintage, nostalgic jazz-swing melodies and styles with modern electronica, hip-hop, and rap and a touch of Broadway glitter, to give people a break from reality, sharing relatable stories from someone who has lived a bit.

Her music is most closely related to artists such as Caro Emerald, Kate Earl, and Amy Winehouse.