Isaac Gantwerk Mayer was born and raised in San Diego, California, where some of his early compositions are in regular use at Congregation Beth Israel.
He attended college at Rutgers University, and graduated in 2020 with a degree in linguistics and creative writing. During his time at Rutgers, he was a singer, composer, and arranger for the Jewish a cappella group Kol haLayla. He has been composing for as long back as he can remember, and although he has tried his hand at several genres he has an abiding penchant for Jewish music and liturgy.