Jam with Jamie is a nationwide children’s entertainment company specializing in music for birthday parties, events, public and private classes, playgroups and preschool music education.
We’ve been bringing music into children’s lives for 16 years, dedicated to sparking the little musician that lives inside every child!
We have nearly 100 performers jamming their way into the hearts of families across the country.
In 2007, after graduating from The University of Texas at Austin, Jamie moved to NYC to be a Broadway actress. She was auditioning for every musical under the sun and to supplement her income she was teaching children’s music classes at Citibabes in Soho. Her mom, Cheryl, who has since passed, told her that she had a family friend looking for someone to perform at a birthday party and encouraged her to look into it! She helped her come up with the name Jam with Jamie and made business cards on her home computer to get Jamie started. What started as a couple parties here and there, quickly turned into jam packed weekends performing at kids birthdays, hopping around the tri-state area and fitting in as many parties as she could in a day. With a guitar on her back and a bag of fun musical instruments and props, Jamie was like a modern day Bert from Mary Poppins!
As the business continued to grow, Jamie realized that she needed to find more performers that had as much passion for music and kids as she did to keep up with the demand. She began to handpick and train talented musicians to do what is now known as our signature Classic Jam. Over the years, more talented performers joined the team and Jam with Jamie has expanded beyond the NYC tri-state area and is now nationwide with performers in Miami (Jamie’s hometown!) and 9 more cities! 16 years later, Jam with Jamie has more than 90 entertainers across eight states performing at birthday parties, classes, and events every day of the week with plans to expand internationally. They have multiple party packages and entertainment options to be a one-stop shop for any party or event a client could dream of. They do music classes and playgroups, and have music teachers with a fully customized Jam with Jamie curriculum in multiple preschools across the United States.
Jamie Kolnick is a mother of three, entrepreneur, philanthropist, writer and performer. She is the Founder/CEO of Jam with Jamie, a nationwide children’s music entertainment and education company, and the Co-founder of The Epstein "Reach for the Stars Scholarship Foundation”, a foundation providing financial aid to graduating seniors from South Florida high schools. This foundation was originally founded by her parents Murray and Cheryl Epstein, in memory of her brother Alan who passed away in a car accident in 1998. This foundation now carries on the legacy of Jamie's parents Murray and is led by herself and her brother Mike. Jamie has extensive experience in the theatrical and television world as a performer, producer, creator and writer. She has become a star personality in the parenting world through Jam with Jamie and is a familiar voice to families worldwide. Jamie's inaugural children's music festival, Little Jam Fest, took place March 3, 2024 at Jungle Island's Bloom Ballroom in Miami, presented by Baptist Health Miami Cancer Institute and Nicklaus Children's Hospital. She is looking forward to the second annual Little Jam Fest in 2025. Jamie is originally from Miami, Florida, a graduate of the University of Texas at Austin, and currently lives with her husband Shaun and three children Zach, Evan, and Zoey in South Miami.
Aliya Ellenby is the Executive Director of Jam with Jamie. With a background in theater, education, and performance activism, she is passionate about the arts as being central to learning for all ages. Working remotely from her home in Cochabamba, Bolivia, Aliya is committed to always strengthening the connections between families and music. After completing her degree at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts, her work has included being a study abroad advisor, editing a collection of bilingual children's books, coordinating the recording of the first children's album in Bolivia, teaching middle school Language Arts, leading arts education workshops, and being an integral member of Títeres Elwaky: an ensemble of artists and educators. Working with the nearly 100 performers on the Jam with Jamie team since 2020 is the highlight of her role, and it is with appreciation and joy that she gets to connect these amazing artists with Jam with Jamie clients. Aliya is continually humbled by the wisdom of children. She has two of her own, who are her greatest teachers.
Vilma is a professional in International Business and Finance, and an expert in events, business, and operations development. With over 15 years of experience, she excels as the Event and Operations Manager at Jam with Jamie. Before joining the team, she demonstrated her entrepreneurial spirit by founding and running her own event management company for six years, operating in Colombia, with international clientele. Her journey at Jam with Jamie began in 2022, initially working from her home base in Barranquilla, Colombia, before the opportunity to relocate to Miami, Florida. Vilma is charismatic and loves a good daily dose of laughter, bringing positivity and energy to her work and interactions. When she's not securing top-notch bookings or streamlining operations, you'll find her letting loose on the dancefloor, because for Vilma, music isn't just a passion—it's a way of life!
