Meet Jeff Icuss | Founder; BreathPlayer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Jeff Icuss and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Jeff, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
Dealing with the stress of life as a composer in Hollywood, discovering mindfulness breathing was really life changing for me; this practice of focusing on my breath and returning focus to the breath was this cheat code that could be described as nothing short of clarity. I loved doing it. I developed all sorts of personal breathing methodologies. In my head I’d imagine piano notes going up on the inhale, and down on the exhale, waves in and out with my breath. It slowly came into focus, but I was able to translate what was in my head to an app. I wanted to make something that was different from other meditation apps where the user simply followed an inhale/exhale prompt. I wanted to make it dynamic, where you were inputting your breath and getting something back. I wanted it to honor the breath, not make it something it’s not. And that’s when breath player was born. I think that above all, I really want this app to help people and learn how powerful a tool your breath can be.

After I made Breath Player, I made another app that just makes meditation, relaxation sounds and ambient music. It’s called Aeris and it’s this huge mix and match library of sounds and music good for sleeping, meditating, and relaxing.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I love sound; Pitches, frequencies, instruments and recording techniques are necessary to produce audio, but what I really love is the timbre (pronounced tamber), or the texture of sound. I like creating timbres. Is a sound rough or smooth? Metallic or wooden? What color is the sound? I like to keep it simple and organic, letting the timbre of the sound do much of the talking. This results in a simple, yet incredibly rich and relaxing sonic experience. I think this style of music engages the listener in a completely unique way. Simple tones can evoke a calm that is as visceral as much as it is active listening.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I lived in hollywood for 11 years right at the entrance to Runyon Canyon, so we’d definitely do Runyon and then Papusas at La Numero Uno followed by drinks at the Roosevelt. Any hike (Hollywood sign, Griffith) is great because you get this unique surrealness of looking down on all the bustle of LA with everything pretty quiet around you in nature. It’s always fun to drive Sunset all the way out to Pacific Palisades, Will Rodgers or even El Matador. I always tell east coasters to get as many salads and meals with fresh veggies in them. Gotta grab Korean BBQ at least once. An underrated thing I love about LA is there so many Michelin star restaurants and foodie projects around here you really have so many different great options. In the rough, I think LA has really gotten good at Pizza. You can get an awesome slice in most places.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
My wife.

Website: BreathPlayer: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/breathe-with-breath-player/id1435169594

Other: Aeris: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/aeris-white-noise-soundbath/id1532454851