| L.E. Staiman | |
| Birth Name: | Eli Noah Staiman |
| Alias: | L.E. Doug Staiman |
| Birth Date: | 1987 or 1988 |
| Birth Place: | Binghamton, New York |
| Origin: | Los Angeles, California |
| Genre: | Jewish rock, pop punk, alternative rock, parody |
| Occupation: | Singer, songwriter, guitarist, music and film producer, comedian, director, actor, screenwriter |
| Instrument: | Vocals, guitar, drums, piano, bass |
| Years Active: | 2005–present |
| Associated Acts: | The Groggers, Aryeh Kunstler, 3 Day Yuntif |
| Spouse: | Esti Staiman |
Eliyahu Noah "Eli" Staiman, professionally known as L.E. Doug Staiman or simply L.E. Staiman, is an American musician, actor, comedian, and filmmaker. He was the frontman and founder of the Jewish pop punk band The Groggers, which he formed with guitarist Ari Friedman in 2010. Outside of The Groggers, he has performed with artists including Aryeh Kunstler, Benny Friedman, and Dave Days, and released several solo singles, including with the short-lived duo 3 Day Yuntif. In addition to music he has pursued filmmaking, directing music videos and comedy sketches for various YouTubers and making his feature film directorial debut in 2022 with Love Virtually, starring Cheri Oteri, Stephen Tobolowsky, and Paul F. Tompkins.
Staiman was born in Binghamton, New York. His family moved several times during his childhood, with Staiman attending day school at Talmudical Academy of Baltimore and Rabbi Alexander S. Gross Hebrew Academy in Miami, Florida; he later studied at Yeshivas Ner Yaakov in Israel.[1] After returning to America, he graduated from Touro College.[2]
See main article: The Groggers. One of Staiman's early bands performed at Yeshiva University's Battle of the Bands, where he met guitarist Ari Friedman, then an undergraduate at the school. The two were later reintroduced at Queens College and briefly played together in a classic rock cover band called Steel Eagle. In 2010, Staiman recruited Friedman and several other musicians to film a video for a song he had written called "Get". After the video became a minor viral hit, Staiman officially assembled the group as The Groggers. Their debut album, There's No 'I' in Cherem, was released on August 29, 2011.
For the band's 2012 video "Jewcan Sam", Staiman received rhinoplasty from the video's co-producer, Miami plastic surgeon Dr. Michael Salzhauer. Following the song's release and subsequent controversy, the band went on a brief hiatus, during which Staiman moved to Los Angeles and pursued a solo career. However, the band returned later in the year with a song called "Mindy".[3] Despite releasing three more singles from a planned second album, the album never materialized and the band has been inactive since 2015.
Prior to forming The Groggers, Staiman was a longtime member of Aryeh Kunstler's touring band, the Aryeh Kunstler Band (AKB).[4] Since 2012, Staiman has released a number of singles as a solo artist. He contributed guitar to Benny Friedman's 2015 single "Toda!", appearing in the video alongside Groggers bandmates Drew Salzman and Addison Scott. The same year, Staiman and Ira Silver formed the Jewish pop duo 3 Day Yuntif, who released their debut single, "Thank God It's Shabbos (TGIS)". In 2016, he collaborated with YouTuber Dave Days on a mashup of Adele's "Hello" and Foo Fighters' "Everlong".[5] In 2018, Staiman released a new single, "Ghosted", as well as a cover of 5 Seconds of Summer's "Lie to Me".
In addition to his own music, Staiman has also written, produced, and directed several music videos for other musicians, primarily on YouTube. These include Avery, Taylor Carroll, Bart Baker, Dave Days, Noey Jacobson and The Groggers themselves. He appeared in a 2014 BuzzFeed video entitled "Jews Decorate Christmas Trees For The First Time".[6] In 2017, Staiman directed and co-wrote "Find Your Song", a music video promoting Shalhevet High School that featured student and Gotham actor David Mazouz.[7] As of 2017, he was the official cameraman and editor for Mayim Bialik's YouTube channel.[8]
Staiman has had several small acting roles, beginning with a 2013 appearance on Brand X with Russell Brand as a pedophile name Morry Urple. He co-wrote and co-produced with director Zach Zorba Grashin the 2021 horror film Knifecop, starring Kane Hodder.[9] He is set to make his directorial debut in 2022 with the film Love Virtually, which he also produced and co-wrote with Cheston Mizel and which stars Cheri Oteri, Stephen Tobolowsky, and Paul F. Tompkins.
| 2019 | Ohr (Light) | Documentary | ||||||
| 2020 | Alive in the Darkness |
| ||||||
| 2021 | Knifecorp | Role: "News Reporter: | ||||||
| 2022 | Love Virtually |
| ||||||
| TBA | Like and Subscribe | Role: Reeves Alcott |
| Year | Song | Artist | Credit | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | "Eishes Chayil" | Director, producer, writer, editor (with Farrell Goldsmith and Chaim Berkowitz) | Own band; second single from There's No 'I' in Cherem. | |
| 2011 | "Spread the Light" | The Avoda | Director (with Aryeh Kunstler) | Hanukkah single |
| 2013 | "Not My Style" | Taylor Carroll | Director | |
| "Burn" | Avery | Ellie Goulding cover | ||
| "Wake Me Up" | Avicii cover | |||
| "Wrecking Ball" | Jamie Charoen | Director, editor | Miley Cyrus cover | |
| "Made in the USA | Demi Lovato cover | |||
| "No Escapin'" | Manou | Director | ||
| 2014 | "Shake It Off" | Jamie Charoen | Director, editor | Taylor Swift cover |
| "Am I Wrong/Rather Be" | Noey Jacobson | Director, music producer | Nico and Vinz/Clean Bandit mashup | |
| "A Sky Full of Stars" | Coldplay rap cover | |||
| "Tell Me" | Video producer | |||
| "Cool Kids and Heroes" | Director, music producer | Mashup of songs by Sam Smith, Echosmith, Tove Lo, U2, and Avicii | ||
| "Not Going to Shacharis" | The Groggers | Director (with Mike Schultz) | ||
| 2016 | "Me, Myself & I Response" | Noey Jacobson | Music and video producer | Remix of song by G-Eazy and Bebe Rexha |
| "One Call Away Mashup" | Mashup of songs by Charlie Puth, Drake, Adele, Marvin Gaye, Maroon 5, and Carly Rae Jepsen. | |||
| "Oxygen" | ||||
| "Vehi She'amda" | Shwekey cover | |||
| "One Dance (King David Remix)" | Music producer | Remix of song by Drake |