A few years ago, Jack Pawela and his father, Ted Pawela saw a need in the local music industry for musicians to find help to record their songs in a professional setting, create original content and build a community.
“We started this from nothing and just had this vision of building a studio that wasn’t just a professional studio where people could come to record, but could really be sort of like a launching pad or an incubator for careers in the music industry,” Jack Pawela said.
Now Pawela and his dad are celebrating three years of the family-run business, The Music Company, located in Pacific Beach. Jack is the general manager and his father is the executive director.
The nonprofit company’s core services include professional recording studio spaces and equipment, creating promotional video content and podcasts, a children’s summer camp, networking mixers and educational workshops in songwriting, royalties and publishing.
Studio rentals start at $20 per hour, and there are free events throughout the year. The nonprofit also hosts fundraisers, applies for grants and accepts donations and sponsorships to help lower the costs of its services, Pawela, an audio engineer and music producer, said.
“These kinds of pro resources make a huge difference for artists trying to actually build a career,” Pawela said. “Most people getting into the music industry don’t have any way to access these resources, so we thought about changing that as well as providing some other things that we’ve just seen that artists, engineers and really anyone trying to work in this industry tends to need.”
Pawela’s music background started when he was 6 years old, and his dad taught him how to play the guitar. He grew up in Detroit until about the age of 12, and then moved to San Diego with his family. The 27-year-old majored in business at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo and he said he took as many music classes as he could.
Over the years, Pawela said he fell in love with electronic dance music and now produces tracks in that genre and is starting to play sets of his own music around San Diego.
As The Music Company’s general manager, Pawela manages the day-to-day operations of the nonprofit and works with the audio team to ensure their clients have everything they need for their recording sessions.
Pawela said his dad provides the “upper level business experience” as the executive director and finds funding through grants, sponsorships and private donors. His dad previously worked running a software company, Pawela said.
“A little bit different than music, but a lot of great experience running a functional organization and scaling a business,” Pawela said. “But he is also a musician and a music lover all his life.”
Pawela said they chose Pacific Beach as The Music Company’s headquarters because there is a little bit for everyone, such as various venues hosting live music and DJs, tasty restaurants and the beach.
“It’s a lively town,” Pawela said. “There’s a lot going on. It’s kind of got a high-paced feel to it, but not intense, and it still has the laid-back atmosphere of a beach town. I really just love that there’s kind of always something to do here.”
Here are Pawela’s favorite places to dine and explore in and around Pacific Beach.
Jack Pawela is the general manager at The Music Company, a nonprofit recording studio, whose mission is to offer technical and professional resources for people seeking careers in the music industry. (Brian Witkin)
Q: Where is your favorite dining option?
A: Rocky’s Crown Pub. Great atmosphere, cool staff, and the best burgers in town. It just feels like a classic old bar out of a movie. It’s like a nostalgic kind of atmosphere, and it very much feels like a community space. I like to have places near me that I’ll go to regularly and know people when I walk in.
Wetsuit rentals hang to dry outside Pacific Beach Surf Shop on May 2, 2026. (McKenzie Patterson / For The San Diego Union-Tribune)
Krystyna Biliaieva purchases a water from Pacific Beach Surf Shop on May 2, 2026. (McKenzie Patterson / For The San Diego Union-Tribune)
Marcos Guimaraes, left and Dylan Byrd, right organize beach gear at Pacific Beach Surf Shop on May 2, 2026. (McKenzie Patterson / For The San Diego Union-Tribune)
Surfboard rental storage at Pacific Beach Surf Shop on May 2, 2026. (McKenzie Patterson / For The San Diego Union-Tribune)
Rental advertisement is displayed outside Pacific Beach Surf Shop on May 2, 2026. (McKenzie Patterson / For The San Diego Union-Tribune)
Inside Pacific Beach Surf Shop, awards are displayed alongside a photograph of the original shop on May 2, 2026. (McKenzie Patterson / For The San Diego Union-Tribune)
Advertisement for secondhand surf gear is displayed outside Pacific Beach Surf Shop on May 2, 2026. (McKenzie Patterson / For The San Diego Union-Tribune)
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Wetsuit rentals hang to dry outside Pacific Beach Surf Shop on May 2, 2026. (McKenzie Patterson / For The San Diego Union-Tribune)
Q: What is your favorite small retail business or pop-up vendor to support?
A: PB Surf Shop. It’s a great local surf shop right on the boardwalk and everyone there is really cool. They’re out there doing lessons all the time and you can tell they all just really love it. I’m a surfer, so I definitely go in there for things that I need. It’s another just great community feeling kind of vibe.
Q: Where is your favorite open space?
A: The beach. I surf at Tourmaline Surfing Park and near the Pacific Beach Pier frequently. There’s this whole crew of people all hanging out that are friendly, who try to get to know each other out in the water. It’s just a good atmosphere there.
Q: Where is the best piece of artwork or hidden gem?
A: I love the chalk murals that Robby from PB Surf Shop makes on the boardwalk. There’s something new every time I walk by. He’s done a lot of them, and they are kind of a graffiti art sort of style. One of the really impactful ones I saw recently was a whole portrait of somebody’s dog that had passed away and he did like a whole memorial thing for the dog.
Q: Where is your favorite entertainment attraction or historic landmark?
A: Firehouse has some great DJ sets and a cool space. My main draw is the music, that’s definitely what I have in mind when choosing where to go out. And my experience there is something different every night. It captures the beach atmosphere pretty well, too, just being all open air upstairs like that. If I’m going to be going out in PB, I want somewhere like that.