Isaac is an incredibly talented musician, composer, and teacher. He is in a band called Pangea, and they have recently recorded their first EP at Battle Born Studios in Las Vegas.  He’s sensitive, creative, and makes the world a better place. I feel so blessed to know him and I’m positive you’ll recognize his goodness right away.

Do you believe music has the ability to change the world?
Music continually changes the world for good and bad by changing how people view the world. Music often reflects and perpetuates trends in culture and ways of thinking. Like any form of art, it can uplift people, or bring people down. It can motivate people to do good or bad.

What is your most prized possession? Why?
My most prized possession, even though I don’t technically own it, is my family. My wife and our baby that’ll be here soon. I’m just glad my wife chooses to be my wife. She makes my life so much better that I ever thought It’d be.

Thinking on fatherhood, what are some things you hope to instill in your future children?
I hope to instill in my child a sense of optimism, gratitude, and general contentment. These are things that do NOT come natural to me at all. I’ve had to fight and pray and consistently work really hard to even get to the point where I’m at. I hope that my son sees me being confident and optimistic about the future as I go through challenges, and hopefully that’ll be a part of him as well. I also hope he learns that when he does what he knows he ought to do, when he’s supposed to do it, whether he feels like doing it or not, he’ll achieve greater satisfaction and greater happiness in life.

What band first had the most impact on you? That you can remember, anyway..
That’s a toughy…I don’t know exactly. There are, however, many songs that have impacted me a lot. Most of the music that really resonates with me has a similar feel to it. I try to capture that feel in a lot of the music that I write. One thing that I’ve realized in writing music and listening to music is that people don’t listen to music to see how good the musician is…they listen to it because they want to FEEL GOOD. A couple examples of some songs that make me feel good would be “Little Motel” by Modest Mouse; “The Aftermath” by Kashmir; “I can feel a hot one” by Manchester Orchestra, and “Firelight” by Young the Giant. But that’s me. Most people have their own style or kind of music that really hits them.

If you could offer one piece of advice to a group of complete strangers, what would it be?
There are a few things I’ve learned that have helped me a lot..but I can’t be sure if they would mean anything to strangers. What I would hope people understand is that they can control how they feel by choosing what thoughts they entertain in their minds. If I want to be completely miserable, I can do it pretty easily by choosing to entertain thoughts of inadequacy, fear, or hopelessness. If I want to be happy, I can choose to dwell on the loving relationships that I have, my accomplishments, my unlimited potential, and God’s infinite goodness. We all have control of what we spend our time thinking about. What we’re thinking about will determine the emotions that we feel. There is a simple formula to being happy. Choose to THINK uplifting thoughts. What you think about is one of very few things you can actually control.

What are some things hopeful musicians should know about starting a band and/or performing in front of people?
Before performing, put yourself in the audiences shoes. What do they want? They want to feel good. If you want to succeed as a musician it’s your goal to help them do that. “People spend money when they feel good” – Walt Disney…i think. Anyways. If you are confident in your sound and your music, they’ll see it in you and they’ll get into it to…unless of course it’s absolute garbage. However if you are awkward and nervous, they’ll feel awkward and nervous for you…which means they won’t feel very good, which means they may not want to see you perform again. Also, practice your stuff so much that you can do it in your sleep. With your emotions running high in a performance…you will sometimes mess up on the parts you’re less prepared for..even if you get them right most of the time when you practice. If the audience sees you second guessing yourself, you’ve lost them. If you are ridiculously prepared, you’ll be able to really have fun, which will enable your audience to have fun.

In your years of teaching guitar, what are some things you’ve learned from your students?
My students have taught me that ANYONE can do very very well if they put in the necessary time. The students I struggle teaching the most are the ones that are naturally very bright. They generally succeed for a little while, then they stop practicing as soon as they get to material that they can’t do perfectly on their first or second attempt. They usually stop getting better because they stop practicing, then they having fun playing their instrument. The students who end up doing really well are usually the ones that struggle for a while but develop the habit of pushing through harder material until they’ve got it. They continually are learning, so they continually are enjoying playing music. I usually don’t even have to push them to start composing and performing, because they just do it instinctively. They work hard so they love what they can do, then they love showing it to others.

What drives your passions?
My passions are driven by a lot of different things. First of all, I’d like to be someone who can tell people with complete confidence that they can accomplish their dreams. When I’ve done it, I’ll be able to better help others do it. I want my son to know that he can succeed in any area that he wants to, no matter if everyone tells him that it’s not a safe career choice. I might be being naive..but I don’t think so. I think it’s possible.