Jessica Chapnik Kahn is an Argentinian Australian singer-songwriter, actor, poet and writer. She has worked in theatre, TV and film, written books, released albums and played and collaborated on musical projects with some of Australia’s finest artists.
Jessica immigrated to Australia as a child and learnt English by watching the Children’s TV show, Play School. She began song writing and performing in her first band as a teenager. When the band dismantled she began touring nationally and internationally in the bands of Sarah Blasko, Old Man River, Kahn Brothers and Ben Lee. She went on to work on 4 albums with Lee, including co-writing and co-producing his album Welcome to the Work, documenting her and Lee's experiences with psychedelics, and making the soundtrack for the Australian film The Square, directed by Nash Edgerton. The album was nominated for an ARIA Fine Arts Award for ‘Best Original Soundtrack’.
Jessica has released two solo albums under the artist name Appleonia, including the much-loved Appleonia song ‘She is the Sun’. Her debut solo album OH was released with a series of accompanying video art created by director Penny Vozniak and Jessica, mostly filmed in their homes and living rooms. The videos were featured in film festivals, winning indie awards and accolades.
Jessica trained as an actor in New York City for two years at the Atlantic Theater Company Acting School, which was founded by playwright David Mamet. On returning to Australia, she became most known for her role in Australian TV drama Home and Away, playing Sam Tolhurst/Holden as a semi-regular.
In 2018, Jessica published her first children’s book, Lenny and the Ants, illustrated by iconic Australian artist Matthew Martin. In 2019, she released her collection of poems and drawings, MADRE, which she wrote in the depths of postpartum, deeply inspired by the birth of her son, Lev. In 2020 she co-wrote the memoir A Repurposed Life, which was long-listed for an ABIA Award for Biography Book of the Year 2021.
Jessica lives by the beach in Sydney, Australia with her husband and two children, Lev and Shemi. She regularly performs and is currently working on several writing projects.