Jonah Freedman

Siblings Jonah and Amanda Freedman, and their friend Nicholas Papadatos opened Freedman’s in Los Angeles in November 2017. The revisionist and contemporary take on the Jewish deli was an instant hit, garnering praise from the likes of the late Jonathan Gold and landing the No. 4 spot on Bon Appetit’s “Hot Ten” best new restaurants list.

While Freedman’s updates and pays homage to deli classics, its playlist is anything but old school. It’s fun, and also runs all over the board with selections from Wilco, Migos, Carly Rae Jepsen, Fela Kuti, Sturgill Simpson and Japanese Breakfast.

"I’ve tried to compile something that I feel is reflective of what we play at Freedman’s, “Jonah told us. “Ultimately though, our musical selections come down to whoever is at the helm of the Sonos system, which often (until fairly recently) was our opening bartender and my college roommate, Rob Sperry-Fromm.“ Rob, ex-Brooklyn Vegan editor and Invisible Oranges contributor, emeritus pop-culture theorist at Freedman’s, and all around good dude is largely responsible for the development of my musical inclinations. With a wide ranging interest in everything from thrash metal to candy pop, he’s certainly taught me to keep an ear out for what’s good and to unabashedly praise it once you find it.

“So here we have my Freedman’s mix,” Jonah declared. “I’ve tried to keep a certain tempo across the playlist while exploring a few different genres. I’ve also tried to select songs that feel good in our space. Lately, I’ve been quite into Kim Petras and the kind of candied, Barbie-world pop songs that she’s associated with. Thrown into the mix is some indie rock, ethio-jazz, alt-country and hip hop. It’s kind of all over the place, but ultimately I think comes together quite well. It’s not particularly esoteric or obscure. It’s just what I like to listen to, especially during a busy weekend service."