The X Ambassadors may have just broken through airwaves with their single, “Renegades”—which, after being featured in a Jeep commercial for the manufacturer’s Renegade model—reached No. 1 on Billboard's Alternative Songs chart two months after it was released, but vocalist Sam Harris, his brother Casey and guitarist Noah Feldshuh have known each other since they were kids growing up in Ithaca, New York. The quartet was completed when Sam and Noah met drummer Adam Levin in New York City as freshmen at the New School in 2006. Today, they’re releasing their debut album, VHS, on KIDinaKORNER/Interscope. Drummer Adam Levin talks to Myspace about what their debut means, and being championed by Imagine Dragons.

Hometown: Sam, Noah and Casey all grew up in Ithaca, New York. Adam grew up in Los Angeles.

Current residence: We all live on the road! We only go home for the few days we have off every month. Noah, Casey and I live in Brooklyn and Sam is in the process of moving to Los Angeles.

Why did you decide to form a band?

The four of us have played in bands since the 7th grade and it’s always been a dream to do it full time. We’ve been working towards this for a really long time. It’s honestly the only thing any of us have ever wanted to do.

You formed a decade ago. Why are you only releasing VHS now?

We have released lots of music over the past decade, most of which won’t be included on VHS. VHS is our first full length release on a major label, and all of the experiences and music we’ve written together over the last decade has led us to this point. While, we’ve been together and have been writing music for a long time VHS really encapsulates our songwriting over the last two or three years.

I read that you called your debut VHS because it's sort of a trip down memory lane. What do you mean by that?

VHS is definitely a trip down memory lane. We decided to go this route based on our love of the classic hip-hop records we grew up listening to. Many of these records included interludes that helped tell a story that ties in with the songs on the album. We decided to tell OUR story with interludes that include audio from old home videos.

Who are your biggest musical influences?

We are all have a diverse influences that span many genres. As previously mentioned, we all love Hip hop from the past and present. We all grew up listening to a lot of alt-rock like the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Foo Fighters, Queens of the Stone Age, Rage Against the Machine, Nine inch Nails.

Describe the moment when you realized you wanted to make music for a living.

I have wanted to play music ever since i was a toddler. Both of my brothers were in bands (they were 10 and 12 years older) when I was a kid and I always looked up to them. Neither of them ended up doing music professionally, but I have always dreamed of making music for a living.

What was it like collaborating with Imagine Dragons?

Imagine dragons is definitely one of our favorite bands and our favorite people in general. They have acted like big brothers towards us and have taught us how to be a professional band. They also gave us our break by bringing us to Alex Da Kid and KIDinaKORNER/Interscope Records. We’ve been lucky enough to collaborate with them, and we think they are just the best.

Who else would you love to collaborate with?

We’d love to collaborate with Nine inch Nails / Trent Reznor and Radiohead.

What do you do for fun?

We all have different hobbies. Noah and I like to play golf. Casey loves to spend time outside and loves playing this nerdy spaceship game called Kerbal Space Program. Sam likes to go to movies by himself and cry.

What's the craziest thing a fan has ever done for you?

We love all of our fans and they have done some pretty amazing things for us. From opening up and telling us how our songs have positively affected our lives, to bringing us amazing pieces of artwork related to the band. Also some of our fans bring us AWESOME baked treats. We love that!

What are you most excited for this summer?

We are SO excited about the release our debut album VHS and tour as much as possible to promote it. It’s gonna be a crazy summer!

What's your favorite city to play in and why?

Our favorite city to play is always Norfolk, Virginia. Our first big sellout show was in Norfolk and we love playing at the Norva theater. We love the staff there and the venue is amazing.

How would you describe your music to someone who's never heard you before?

We always describe our music as “sleepy soul rock with hip-hop influences.”