# Jesse Rutherford
**Jesse Rutherford** (Jesse James Rutherford; born 1991) is an American singer, songwriter, and former child actor, known as the lead vocalist of the California alternative rock band the [Neighbourhood](https://www.edgepedia.org/neighbourhood) and for a parallel solo career recorded under the names Jesse Rutherford and Jesse®. His band's 2013 single "[Sweater Weather](https://www.edgepedia.org/sweater-weather)" gave him his Billboard Hot 100 debut, reaching the Top 15, and his solo catalog runs from the pop album & (2017) through the indie rock and soul album Wanted? (2024).[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/rutherford-mn0003439500) • [2](https://music.apple.com/us/album/wanted/1762112669)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 1991 in Newbury Park, in the greater Los Angeles area[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/rutherford-mn0003439500) |
| Band role | Co-founder and lead vocalist of the Neighbourhood, formed in 2011[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/rutherford-mn0003439500) • [3](https://historia-biografia.com/jesse-rutherford/) |
| Breakthrough | "Sweater Weather" reached the Billboard Hot 100 Top 15 in 2013[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/rutherford-mn0003439500) |
| Solo albums | & (2017, Columbia), Garageb& (2019), the &ONE mixtape (2023, Atlantic), Wanted? (2024)[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/rutherford-mn0003439500) • [2](https://music.apple.com/us/album/wanted/1762112669) |
| Early career | Child actor from about age ten; 2002 film credits include Life or Something Like It and Bundy, plus a Star Trek: Enterprise episode[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/rutherford-mn0003439500) |
| Other names | Also recorded as Jesse James, Jesse James Rutherford, and Jesse®[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/rutherford-mn0003439500) |
## Early acting and first bands
Rutherford was born in Newbury Park in the greater Los Angeles area and entered entertainment as a child, beginning with small commercial roles at around age ten.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/rutherford-mn0003439500) • [4](https://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/jesse-james-rutherford-41956.php) In 2002 he had supporting roles in the films *[Life or Something Like It](https://www.edgepedia.org/life-or-something-like-it)* and *Bundy* and appeared in an episode of *Star Trek: Enterprise*.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/rutherford-mn0003439500)
Music came next in stages. By the late 2000s he was singing in local bands, and in the early 2010s he recorded collaborative tracks under the hip-hop alias [Jesse James](https://www.edgepedia.org/jesse-james).[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/rutherford-mn0003439500) In early 2011 he released his first solo mixtape, *Truth Hurts, Truth Heals*, showing his rap abilities while part of the duo the Good Boys with Jez Dior; that same year he joined with Zach Abels, Jeremy Freedman, Mikey Margott, and Bryan Sammis to found the Neighbourhood.[3](https://historia-biografia.com/jesse-rutherford/)
## The Neighbourhood
The band, based in Newbury Park, described its sound as dark pop, with an emphasis on sub-heavy bass and heavily affected guitars over Rutherford's vocals.[5](https://www.interviewmagazine.com/music/the-neighbourhood) Their debut album *I Love You.* appeared in April 2013, and "Sweater Weather" climbed to number one on Billboard's Hot Alternative Songs chart that summer.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/rutherford-mn0003439500) • [6](https://musicboxpete.blogspot.com/2013/07/interview-w-neighbourhood.html) An Interview Magazine profile from the album's release week described Rutherford, then 21, as having channeled his hip-hop background into polished pop vocals.[5](https://www.interviewmagazine.com/music/the-neighbourhood)
**Chart record.** The band's second full-length, *Wiped Out!* (2015), produced by Justyn Pilbrow, reached number one on Billboard's alternative chart and spawned singles including "R.I.P. 2 My Youth," "The Beach," and "Daddy Issues."[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/rutherford-mn0003439500) The *Hard* EP (September 2017) cracked the Billboard 200, and the album *The Neighbourhood*, produced by Lars Stalfors, followed in March 2018.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/rutherford-mn0003439500) In 2020 the band released *Chip Chrome & The Mono-Tones*, named for a metallic alter ego of Rutherford's; it missed the Billboard 200 but reached number 25 on the alternative chart.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/rutherford-mn0003439500) • [7](https://www.allure.com/story/chip-chrome-jesse-rutherford-the-neighbourhood-makeup-interview) Rutherford told Coup de Main that the Chip Chrome character had originally belonged to his solo projects before he decided it fit the band better.[8](https://www.coupdemainmagazine.com/neighbourhood/17101)
## Solo career
Rutherford has alternated band and solo output throughout his career, releasing his first solo album, the pop-leaning *&*, in 2017 on [Columbia Records](https://www.edgepedia.org/columbia-records) under the name Jesse Rutherford.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/rutherford-mn0003439500) The more rock-oriented *Garageb&* followed in April 2019; ten of its twelve songs were recorded on the [GarageBand](https://www.edgepedia.org/garageband) app, with contributions from the production duo Take a Daytrip.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/rutherford-mn0003439500) He also appeared on [Benny Blanco](https://www.edgepedia.org/benny-blanco)'s late 2018 release *Friends Keep Secrets* alongside Khalid, Calvin Harris, and Halsey.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/rutherford-mn0003439500)
**Later solo work.** After the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted the music industry, Rutherford re-emerged in early 2023 with the stripped-back single "Joker" backed with the synth ballad "Rainbow."[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/rutherford-mn0003439500) The electronic-minded *&ONE* mixtape, heavier on guitars and electronics, arrived that August on Atlantic, followed on September 20, 2024 by *Wanted?*, an album emphasizing soul and indie rock influences; Apple Music's notes describe it as an attempt to shed his band's shadow, with the twelve-track, 34-minute record released under Secondhand Rodeo LLC in exclusive license to Atlantic.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/rutherford-mn0003439500) • [2](https://music.apple.com/us/album/wanted/1762112669)
## Style and themes
AllMusic characterizes Rutherford's solo songs as stylized contemporary pop fusing hip-hop, atmospheric electro-pop, and driving indie rock.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/rutherford-mn0003439500) His voice has repeatedly been described through its rhythmic delivery: in a later podcast conversation, musician [Billy Corgan](https://www.edgepedia.org/billy-corgan) noted the unusual amount of rhythm in Rutherford's vocals for someone framed as an alternative artist.[9](https://podscripts.co/podcasts/the-magnificent-others-with-billy-corgan/jesse-rutherford-from-the-neighbourhood-the-magnificent-others-with-billy-corgan) In the Coup de Main interview, Rutherford connected his performing persona to attention: acting from age five or six until thirteen gave way to music, which he secured as a career by twenty-one, and he described reworking a habit of measuring his wellbeing by attention from others.[8](https://www.coupdemainmagazine.com/neighbourhood/17101)
## References
1. [Jesse® Biography, AllMusic (Marcy Donelson)](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/rutherford-mn0003439500)
2. [Wanted? album notes, Apple Music](https://music.apple.com/us/album/wanted/1762112669)
3. [Historia y biografía de Jesse Rutherford](https://historia-biografia.com/jesse-rutherford/)
4. [Jesse James Rutherford Biography, The Famous People](https://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/jesse-james-rutherford-41956.php)
5. [Welcome to The Neighbourhood, Interview Magazine (April 22, 2013)](https://www.interviewmagazine.com/music/the-neighbourhood)
6. [MusicBoxPete: Interview w/ The Neighbourhood (July 26, 2013)](https://musicboxpete.blogspot.com/2013/07/interview-w-neighbourhood.html)
7. [Chip Chrome, The Neighbourhood's Knight in Shining Makeup, Allure](https://www.allure.com/story/chip-chrome-jesse-rutherford-the-neighbourhood-makeup-interview)
8. [Interview: The Neighbourhood's Jesse Rutherford on 'Chip Chrome & The Mono-Tones', Coup de Main Magazine](https://www.coupdemainmagazine.com/neighbourhood/17101)
9. [The Magnificent Others with Billy Corgan: Jesse Rutherford transcript](https://podscripts.co/podcasts/the-magnificent-others-with-billy-corgan/jesse-rutherford-from-the-neighbourhood-the-magnificent-others-with-billy-corgan)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Music › Musicians and ensembles › Individual musical biographies › Rock, metal, and popular-band musicians › Indie rock and lo-fi › 2010s and 2020s indie musicians*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 12, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license