About

Eli Pafumi has been on a hunt for the groove since childhood. Schooled in classic song-craft, raised on rock-n-roll and inspired by the roar of great cinematic scores, Eli has become a unique voice in our creative landscape, poised to move to the next level.

Eli's composition's for tv and film can be heard on FOX and Tubi with additional composition for the stage on The Magi and Merry Happy…What? by Helen Murray and Familia de Flamingos by Miguel Muñoz. Additional theatrical work would include The Figs and Hedwig and the Angry Inch (American Stage), Hurricane Diane (Aurora Fox Performing Arts Center), The Hangar and Dream Emporium (Electric Forest Festival), Dedo Vabo's H.i.P.O (Coachella) and Act A Lady (The Hub Theatre/Shippensburg University).

As an accompanying artist, Eli has played with the likes of The Polyphonic Spree, Rozzi and Zach Day in addition to his his own sibling-band RitaRita whose debut record Savta’s Garden released in 2019.

Pafumi is currently the remote music director of the fusion music school SaReGaMe based in Ashburn, VA as well as a private music instructor of over a decade.

Eli is a TEDxHerndon speaker, x3 Bernard/Ebb Songwriting Awards finalist and a Kennedy Center National Society of Arts and Letters, Award for Excellence recipient.

Pafumi’s debut full-length solo record Infancy in Everything released in November 2024 with the companion piece/live EP If Miles Could Talk set to release by the end of the year.

Eli is currently based in Los Angeles, CA

Hear from some others

Most recent interview with ShoutoutLA

"[Savta's Garden] is deep and expansive, but approachable and listenable, even in its most psychedelic explorations...The dichotomy of those sounds, instead of fighting each other, blend into a lysergic tapestry of solid songs that initially come across like some decades-old recording relic, but settle in as a modern record with some solid historical reference points" - Marquee Mag

" [RitaRita's] got this really cool 70s, folky-boogie vibe that I was digging" - KCRW

"songwriter Eli Pafumi’s bouncy, pensive folk-pop love songs...an appealingly fresh approach" - The Washington Post

"this troubadour has lent his voice and skillset to a bevy of mediums...with an authentic bluesy sound and an engaging stage presence, he crafts folk music for the common folk" - The Daily Camera

"His songs are skillfully composed with touches of sweetness and humor" - Broadway World

"His earthy music—a bit bluesy, a bit folky, a bit alternative country—is sublime if you go for that. If not, we can’t be friends." - DC Theatre Scene

"The songs written by Eli Pafumi are well-accomplished in their resonant story-telling." - DC Metro Theatre Arts

"Pafumi's expressive voice and poignant lyrics have caught the attention of audiences. His songwriting journey has been just as much about hard work as it has about inspiration. His songs show an impressive maturity and skilled use of language." - Leesburg Today

"Eli Pafumi ...rocks with a blizzard of joy.” - DC Theatre Scene