“I love you, brotha.” That was the last thing we said to each other. I could hear him now, in his uniquely comforting, raspy voice.

Isaiah’s heart was pure gold. If you were his friend and family, you were lucky to be in his circle. He was loyal, lovable, and would do anything for his people.

Isaiah’s spirit was magnetic. If you ever met him, you couldn’t help but be drawn to his exuberant energy. He had a huge personality, and it was evident in everything he did, whether it was the swagger and charisma he brought to the stage or his gnarly tattoos of Nosferatu and Darth Vader.

Isaiah was the funniest person I’ve ever met. He used humor to connect. No one has ever made me laugh the way he did. If anyone got you to actually ROFL, it was him. He had the ability to make anyone smile and uplifted me during some of my most challenging times. I will miss his Macho Man impression, his phrases like “AKA”, and all the nicknames he gave people. There’s not a single day that goes by that I don’t draw from the IceKat lexicon in one way or another. All those things made Isaiah, Isaiah.

I met Isaiah when Dexter Danger first started in 2000. We went to the same high school and he was a few years younger than me. He would come to our shows and we quickly bonded over punk rock, wrestling, comic books, and action figures. We became close friends and he followed our band closely over the years. In fall of 2004, we invited him to play bass.

It always felt as if he was meant to join Dexter Danger.

Isaiah recorded Hellafornia with us in March of 2005. Given his closeness to the band, he learned all our songs with ease and confidence, and then some. In spring 2005, we embarked on what would be his first national tour. That tour was one of three national tours we went on that year.

From our sleepy town of South San Francisco at the edge of the Pacific, to venues in New Jersey on the coast of the Atlantic, Isaiah touched so many people’s lives.

He was incredibly passionate about music and loved performing. His presence on stage was undeniable. It lit an inspirational fire not just with his bandmates, but the entire audience, and you couldn’t help but watch the curly haired, tattooed wild man rip it up on bass.

Isaiah was so grateful to play music, but what I think he also deeply loved was meeting new people and making new friends. All he ever wanted was to make people happy.

Isaiah was far from shy, and he taught me to be more comfortable in my own skin, in a way that no one else could. He was punk rock in every sense of the word. He centered his world around his family, friends, and community. He was always there to pick them up, and defend them when the going would get tough. You couldn’t ask for a better friend.

I know you’re listening, Isaiah, and I want you to know you will always be on our minds and in our hearts. Your spirit continues to inspire generations. There will never be anyone like you. I love you, brotha, always.

May God shower you with His endless love and mercy.

Your brother,

Aymen