With fingers moving at the speed of light, senior Jacob Kupersmith is a prodigy on the guitar.

  He started playing when he was eight years old, when his mom introduced music into his life.

  Every Saturday Jacob used to go into Philadelphia with his mom, and she would play Metallica during the whole car ride, listening to all their songs. “I wanted to be just like him (Kirk Hammett),” he said.

  His other inspiration is Dimebag Darrell, a guitarist in the band Pantera. “When I listened to him [play] solo, I fell in love with it.”

  He decided to become serious about guitar at the age of thirteen. His goal: to become a professional guitar player. He dreams of being in a band and going on world tours.

  Jacob is constantly challenging himself to be better. He practices thirty minutes every weekday, and two hours every weekend day.

  The hardest part about practice is the tediousness. “And being able to have the patience,” he said. “It’s a huge thing.”

  During the summer, Jacob steps it up to another level.

 “Summer is like grind time. It can go anywhere from two hour to five hours, but I’ve done eight to ten hours.”

  Jacob plays funk, jazz, blues, rock and roll, reggae, metal, and ska, a mix of punk, jazz, and funk. “I think to be a qualified, good musician, you have to be comfortable in anything,” he said.

 But that’s not all. He also sings.

 With a laugh, Jacob said that most people might call his singing screaming. “I don’t have the best voice,” he said, “but when I get into the metal voice, it’s very good.”

  Jacob, whose stage name is Cliff, has lots of experience performing. He’s played at the Vera in Cherry Hill, the School of a Rock in Cherry Hill, and the Voltage Lounge in Philadelphia. He also played at Brighton Bar in Monmouth, New Jersey, where Bon Jovi and Bruce Springsteen once played.  

  When describing  performing on stage, he said, “You don’t really think about it. I’m in a different world where I can do anything. Being on stage is one of the greatest feelings ever.”

 After playing, he feels a sense of freshness, like all the past arguments and issues never happened.

 His advice to other guitarists? “If you’re looking to play guitar, don’t let anybody tell you that you can’t,” he said. “Music is there for all of us. If you just want to strum a guitar and play a few chords, that’s fine. Just have fun, that’s all that matters.”