Michael Ricci

Since: 1995 | Position: Publisher | Location: Philadelphia | Page Views: 299,109

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About Me

What a story! It almost makes me sound important...

Lover of jazz, technology and sitting in a chair, Michael merged his three passions to create All About Jazz.

A web entrepreneur with a background in information technologies, Michael Ricci combined his love of jazz music with his fascination for all things internet and launched All About Jazz in 1995—a website that reaches over 20,000 readers daily.

Michael spun off Jazz Near You in 2012, an event discovery platform focused on collecting jazz events and promoting them through his vast network spanning the web, email, phones, plug-ins & feeds, churches, synagogues, mosques, Piggly Wiggly's, Wawas, and at the bottom of a Cracker Jack's box.

Michael is considered one of jazz's foremost online media visionaries. His All About Jazz website is a 13-time winner of the Jazz Journalists Association's "Best Web Site Covering Jazz" award before the category was ceremoniously retired. AAJ has also been recognized as the top jazz website by Google, New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Wall Street Journal, NPR, BBC, Time Magazine, Forbes Magazine, not to mention Real Housewives of Atlanta and Detroit, people of color, people of no color and by his mother, Lulu.

Prior to All About Jazz, "Mickey" co-founded Vision X Software with Mike Lorenz which achieved worldwide acclaim as the developer of DigiDay, the first ad-supported app, and later ScreenThemes, the first subscription-based app. He is personally responsible for the mega popular "How to Avoid Work at Work" page-a-day calendar app for Windows. Later, he worked with Paramount Pictures (Star Trek) and Lucas Film (Star Wars) as a brand licensee.

Michael lives on the outskirts of Philadelphia with his wife Rosemary and his trusty GSD and Head of AAJ Security, Sammy. He knows 152,790 jazz musicians by name.

Badge

Tier

Steward

Points Earned

2,387,854

Favorite Musicians / Bands

Aaron Parks

Alan Pasqua

Angelo Mastronardi

Antonio Adolfo

Antonio Carlos Jobim

Behn Gillece

Ben Allison

Bill Bruford

Bill Cunliffe

Bill Evans

Bobby Selvaggio

Bobby Watson

Brad Mehldau

Branford Marsalis

Brent Jensen

Brian Blade

Brian Charette

Brian Eaton

Bruce Hornsby

Cal Tjader

Carlos Barba

Chad Fowler

Charles McPherson

Charles Mingus

Charlie Byrd

Charlie Haden

Charlie Parker

Charlie Porter

Chet Baker

Chick Corea

Chris Brubeck

Chris Potter

Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah

Christopher Hollyday

Chuck Redd

Club d'Elf

Conrad Herwig

Cory Weeds

Dan McCarthy

Dan Papirany

Dave Anderson

Dave Bass

Dave Douglas

Dave Holland

Dave Liebman

Dave Stryker

Dave Wilson

David Binney

David Helbock

David Weiss

MORE FAVORITES

My Jazz Story

Thanks to my father and his record collection, I started listening to jazz at an early age. He also took me to concerts, and I was nine when I saw Maynard Ferguson (circa "Live at Jimmy's"). The band's leisure suits were nearly as memorable as the music. Inspired by what I heard and saw, I played trumpet for several years before eventually setting it aside in college. My interest in jazz never faded and I continued collecting music—thousands of vinyl records eventually giving way to thousands of CDs—all the while attending shows. In 1995, I combined my fascination with the emerging internet and my love of jazz to create a website dedicated to promoting the music and the people who make it. More than three decades later, that journey continues...

My House Concert Story

In October 2014, I hosted the Jost Project—Tony Miceli, Paul Jost, and Kevin MacConnell—for a house concert. It was a great crowd—a mix of family, friends and fans of the band. Special guest Michelle Lordi's rendition of "Wichita Lineman" was a treat. I served a robust red wine flown in from Sonoma County that was appropriately labeled "Jazz." I was so inspired that I created a House Concert platform (https://houseconcerts.jazznearyou.com). It may be time to reboot the concept.