Friday, July 21, 2023
I met Dean in 2012 when we were both starting at CCC. When we showed up to music club band and I broke out my guitar, I remember hearing the excitement in his voice, “Ohhhh snap, he’s got the SG!” We shared a laugh. Then we struck up a conversation about how much we both loved Rush, and he picks up my guitar and starts playing the intro to “Spirit of Radio” little did I know it then, but that small encounter with this tall, handsome, extremely intelligent kid would change my life forever. Dean was without doubt the best musician I’ve ever known, and that’s because he approached music the same way he approached everything else in his life; with passion, thanks, joy, and above all, love. I started my first band, Foster the Fallen with him later that year. I remember being pleased at how eager he seemed to be doing a project purely for fun and not for school or grades. We rehearsed in his basement with a couple other good mutual chaps we knew. We’d write music and then go upstairs to the kitchen to eat, usually indulging in Dean’s expertly crafted panninis. Even though FTF never got off the ground, writing and playing originals with Dean was one of the best times of my life. Here were these two wild kids, who could come together with instruments and become little children again. Every conversation we had about the band’s direction, I would communicate what I wanted as a frontman and Dean could instantly tap into that and understand it, even in personal conversations, which speaks to how emotionally in tune and intuitive he was. And it was through spending all this time with him that I truly felt like part of his family like he was a part of mine through sharing mutual time and space. All the little things about Dean’s personality; his passionate nature, his zeal for life, his infinite kindness, and his subtle but outrageous sense of humor are the things I love and miss the most. With all these things, he subconsciously pushed me to be a better person and artist. He brought out the best in me by simply being himself, and I’m eternally grateful to him for that. The hole in my heart he left behind I can scarcely begin to fathom, but my sincerest condolences especially go out to his significant other, his family, and his ASG mates. I know he can’t come to me, but I believe one day, I will go to him in Paradise. And on thay day we’ll finally get to play misic together again; but on that day, we can keep playing forever, and ever, and ever. Rest easy, Dean-O. Thank you for taking the time to be my bestest pal. I love you with my deepest heart, and I will celebrate and miss you always.
