Hello everyone and welcome back to another installment in my Artist of the Week series!
This week we have a special guest, Isaac Rosario aka “SACKI” who is a young upcoming Christian artist hailing from Maryland.
Isaac has always had an interest in music growing up. He started out writing love songs over 4 KING & COUNTRY instrumentals in Elementary School until he was eventually exposed to YouTube. Where he would then discover his passion for writing rap music.
As a pre-teen he would do freestyles with his cousins on whatever “type beats” they could find. Isaac would continue to improve his writing skills through time and practice. Writing became more of a hobby for him as he kept getting better.
His biggest inspirations for writing were a combination of Andy Mineo, Lecrae, Trip Lee, Derek Minor, Tedashi, KJ-52, NF and Wordsplayed, among others.
Isaac began to watch a lot of battle rap videos at going into his teen years.
He states, “I thought it was cool how they used wordplay, and that was something I thought I could learn how to do myself.”
Through his teen years he started listening to more secular music drawing inspiration from artists such as Frank Ocean, 21 Savage, Tyler the Creator Jack Harlow, Drake, Big Sean, and Kendrick Lamar.
Isaac had this to say about that phase of his life:
“I’d study their flows, cadences, and word play like it was homework. For me sitting down and listening to new music was my favorite thing to do. I would really just take in all the different sounds every artist brought, and try to mimic their ways until I could find my own sound.
It would get to a point where I wanted to make music like them and glorify myself, money, and a lifestyle that wasn’t mine. I began to write songs that were not of God.
There was a day that my Dad who is a pastor found these songs and he sat me down and talked to me about it. He asked me what I want to bring to the world.”
It was then that his dad would help him understand the facade he was putting on. He also began to realize that the music he was making wasn’t bringing any message or positivity to the world.
Isaac changed his ways and started writing songs that were more of God focused. A year went by and he started getting good at it.
It was when he was around 15 years old that his youth pastors took notice of his talent. Isaac would start bringing his songs to them for review, guidance, and biblical accuracy.
They saw that a lot of what he was writing was self centered. Although not understanding at first, Isaac would eventually see the flaw in his ways. They showed him that he could write music with a better message.
He let go of his pride and started creating music that truly glorified God. His youth pastors began to use his talents in church services at his home church, Experience Gateway in Williamsport, Maryland. Letting him minister on church Sundays and at different events the church would host.
One of his best friends Ezra McCall also started writing Christian Rap. They would start writing songs and collab together for fun. Ezra ended up buying recording equipment, a DistroKid subscription, and started putting out his own music.
Isaac hadn’t yet decided on a stage name but Ezra wanted to put music out with him so he finally decided on the name, “SACKI”. Which was a nickname his sister would call him ever since he was a kid. The first songs that were published with name, “SACKI” on it were features on Ezra’s songs. With the most famous one being “EVERYDAY” by “Ezra McCall & SACKI”.
Isaac wasn’t yet confident enough to publish his own music yet, so he’d continue to do features on Ezra’s songs like the “Stand Alone – Remix”. which was off of Ezra’s first Album, In Pursuit.
Then Isaac’s cousin Samson, aka “Silence” who is a producer, started making beats. He eventually came to Isaac with a beat he had made and Isaac ended up really liking it, so he wrote to it. Having just bought his first bit equipment, Isaac decided to record it and put it out as his first single entitled “The Race”.
Isaac got a lot of support from people in school and online because he posted it on social media. That gave him some more confidence so he kept writing and a month later would come out with what would end up being his most popular song “Van Gogh”. Seeing thousands of views boosted his confidence in himself a lot.
Isaac decided to drop one song on the fifteenth of every month. He dropped six songs after Van Gogh (“MoN aMi”, “Hopeful”, “COASTIN’”, “You Gotta Love It” , “Eres Solo Tú”, and “Fall Down”). Then he decided to slow down to take time on the quality of sound he was producing.
Eventually he would come out with his collab song “Tempur-Pedic” with fellow artist Noexcuse, engineered by Blaine Taylor, it released on August 15th, 2024.
His last four released songs are “WHAT SHE ABOUT” which is more for the ladies, and “Lessons & Lectures” with Kalin Jones which talks about how he went through dealing with depression as a Christian.
“FISHER” Mix & Mastered by Ayo Milly, and “H.P.L.”
His EP “FAITH”, and Christmas themed single “This Is The Season” (feat. Nani), is what he will be ending the year with.
With plenty more up his sleeve for the future, SACKI is an artist you don’t want to miss out on, with a unique flow, catchy sounds and thought provoking lyrics that point back to God, he’s proving himself a force to be reckoned with and proving that he’s here to stay.
That brings us to the end of this article, if you enjoyed what you read please let me know your thoughts, if you rock with SACKI, make sure to drop him a follow here and also make sure to check out this playlist updated bi-weekly with my favorite songs from the artists featured on this series!
