Isaiah Rashad – The Observatory – Santa Ana, CA

The Observatory of Orange County is very special to me. I’ve created countless memories there, along with one of the best friendships I can ever ask for.

The venue in my opinion is small, but to be fair I’ve only stood in the first 2 sections from the stage. Since I am so small, if I’m not down below in the pit, I do my best to stand within the next bowl up. I knew I’d have a wonderful view to see Isaiah Rashad of Top Dawg Ent. because I had gotten M&G (Meet & Greet) for the show.

Usually when I purchase M&G there is no more then 15 – 20 people in line for it. This time, it truly felt like the M&G line was longer than the general admission! I was beginning to get scared wondering if I’d have a good enough view for the show, or if I’d have enough time to truly conversate with him.

 I was already a nervous wreck knowing I was going to have an opportunity to speak with him, not knowing how long I had with him, or if the conversation I kept playing in my head all week would happen.

 As we were waiting in line, we were handed our VIP Badge, t-shirt, and poster that can be signed by him once we meet. We as fans started to get worried as we’d heard that security had already let people into the venue. We all thought that we might have to stand towards the back. Even though I’m already short, it’d be a small price to pay in exchange for meeting Isaiah!

 Let me tell you that right from the start his vibe was so chill. He made my nervousness disappear as he hugged me but it returned once he asked me my name. I blanked as if I hadn’t known it all my life. So. Embarrassing. He was very sweet about it, said nice to meet you and still I went blank. I didn’t speak to him about his music, about how grateful I was for his talent, nothing. *sigh*

After getting my photo taken, I was handed my poster and headed into the venue with my concert buddy. Turns out, the rumor we heard in the hallway was just that… a rumor. The general admission ticket holders weren’t allowed into the venue yet, but it did look like they were. There was soo many VIP members that the pit was already jam packed full of fans.

So we made our way to the second bowl up (if you’ve been to the observatory before then you know what I’m talking about). We waited as his openers hit the stage until finally his (very cute) DJ hit the stage with some tunes.

Isaiah is an amazing performer, he truly didn’t disappoint. His music to me is very insightful it allows me to look at things from a different perspective, and it did the same live. It was a reflective drive home, but in the best ways possible.

He performed it all! He even took it back to old mixtapes and brought out his label sister SZA. Her voice is sounds so good live!

His show was full of such great energy, he put his all into it and left it on the stage for the crowd. The vibe within the building was something else. I’ve seen some pretty crazy things happen, especially at this venue. But I swear to you, I don’t think I’ve ever been terrified of being in the pit like I was at this show. (And I’ve been to rock shows!)This show was pretty terrifying. The energy couldn’t be matched. Shoes and water bottles flying, people vibing to the music living in the moment even though they were getting squished. It was super crazy to witness, and for once I was glad that there was no room for me inside that pit.

*Isaiah Rashad videos/photos are my own, taken from my phone/camera the day of the show. I don’t own any rights to the songs/lyrics within this post.