Klipsch CEO Paul Jacobs has the hippest gig. He has strolled the red carpet with Mick Jagger, hobnobbed backstage with Taylor Swift, broken bread with Lou Reed, and even tossed back a few in L.A. with Billy Bob Thornton. Somehow, Jacobs stays levelheaded. “I was just this shy kid from the south side. I started playing bass because I was really shy and backward, and girls liked guys who played in bands,” says the executive for the $200 million company that makes high-end loudspeakers (and just signed Andrew Luck as a spokesman). Between jaunts to the Hotel Costes in Paris and the Buddha Bar in London to network, Jacobs escapes to his music room at his home on the south side to tune up his guitar.
BILLY BOB THORNTON
“We were at an L.A. hotel bar. He walked in, and that’s what led to this ad. All this happened while Angelina was up in his hotel bungalow.”
“ALL YOU NEED IS LOVE” ART
“The artist created this after listening to the Beatles straight for two days.”
BLEEDING KEYS CD
“Klipsch invited this local band to play at CES [Consumer Electronics Show] in Vegas. This little band from Indianapolis that plays charity shows at the Monkey’s Tale blew everyone away.”
DIDGERIDOO
“I brought this back from Australia. When the aboriginal people find the perfect piece of wood, they put it on a termite mound to hollow the wood. I met the aborigines who made it.”
LANYARDS
“I’ve been so fortunate. The memorabilia I have is so crazy. It’s everywhere. All great memories. This is stuff that I collect too much of. I just can’t let them go because they represent so many cool things.”
SACRED GUITARS
“We met Lou Reed in Manhattan. After several hours, we left with a deal to make a limited-edition Lou Reed headphone, and I got this signed guitar.”
“Live Nation surprised me by having all of the Avenged Sevenfold [band] sign this. It’s just a really cool piece. I’m a huge fan.”
Photo by Tony Valainis.
This article appeared in the May 2013 issue.
