A native Chicagoan, 28-year-old Isaiah Sharkey spent his early years living in Cabrini Green. Perhaps as a precursor to his future career, he lived with his parents in a row house on a street that is now named for Curtis Mayfield. Coming from a musical household, Isaiah was introduced to music at the age of four, he decided he wanted to be a guitarist and asked his parents to purchase one. Shortly thereafter, Isaiah started learning music under the close introduction of his father, Michael Sharkey.