X Ambassadors front man Sam Harris is psychic.
In between tracks of the band’s debut album “VHS,” Harris can be heard as a kid telling his father that come 2015, he’ll be famous.
Fast-forward to present day and the band is just that. Thanks to a timely spot in a Jeep commercial, the band’s single “Renegades” reached No. 1 on the alternative charts and the Ithaca, New York-based group’s career is poised to explode.
amNewYork caught up with Harris before the band’s SummerStage concert Wednesday in Central Park’s Rumsey Playfield to discuss their road to success, working with British producer Alex Da Kid — who also produced Imagine Dragons, Dr. Dre and Eminem — and just how his dad knew what questions to ask all those years ago.
Take me through how “Renegades” blew up. Who got it on the air?
That was through [our producer] Alex Da Kid, and the people at [our label] Interscope working their magic. It was really cool because I’d never seen anything like it before. It was like they’d made a commercial for us and not about the car. And it was so cool that they went on a limb to do that and just tried to make cool content than a car commercial.
Are you concerned that your start came through product placement and not the more traditional route?
Hell no! [Laughs] This is how people get any sort of attention these days. Of course, you always have to be skeptical when pairing with anyone outside the creative realm, but Jeep has been really great to us and the song is genuine. What’s the downside?
What was Alex Da Kid like in the studio? How did he help push your boundaries?
He’s a real work horse. We’ve been with him for a little over two years, and I have grown a lot as a songwriter since working with him. He doesn’t give up and he doesn’t let me give up. If something isn’t perfect or isn’t right, I’ll work on it with him over and over until it is. We owe a lot to him.
The interludes on “VHS” were a really cool touch. How did your dad know you’d make it big in 2015?
[Laughs] I have no idea. That’s a dad power.
If you go: X Ambassadors are at Rumsey Playfield at Central Park Wednesday night at 6, Fifth Avenue and 72nd Street, sold out
