Ithaca-born X Ambassadors returning home for June 1 show

Ithaca’s own X Ambassadors are heading home June 1 to showcase their newest album "Townie" in the place that inspired its lyrics, and the band's lead singer Sam Harris said he’s excited to get back home.

“My brother (Casey) and I both grew up in Ithaca and this record is all about looking back on that very formative time in my life, toward the end of high school,” he said. “I was so desperate to get out, so desperate to leave and I felt like everywhere I looked was a reminder of the world outside, calling to me.”

Harris said the feeling of being stuck in a small town is what inspired much of Townie’s lyrics.

“There’s a lot of themes on the record about feeling trapped feeling invisible, not having a solid sense of identity," he said. "As Ithaca New Yorkers, we know how unique the place is … but to the rest of the world it’s just kind of like a no-man’s land. I felt like nobody knows or thinks about it.”

Harris certainly thinks about it, as shown in the video for the band’s “Your Town,” which mentions the Chanticleer, one of the oldest and most well-known bars in the city, or the “No Strings” music video, which features shots from all around Tompkins County.

“I wanted people to know who I am, and that begged the deeper question, why do I have to be something so much bigger than what I am," he questioned. "Why do I have to live in NY, or LA, why do I have to be the lead singer of a big band, and why am I trying so hard to not be what I am, a townie kid from upstate New York?”

Harris and the band shot many of the videos with Ithaca native and filmmaker Dan Pfeffer.

“It was really great to get back with him and he and I have known each other since we were in elementary school and have never really worked together on something with the band, so it was fun to do that too,” Harris said.

Making memories

Harris said he and his brother grew up in a very musical household under his mother, Ithaca native and singer Margaret Wakeley.

"She would do a lot of local shows and Casey and I as little kids would come up on stage and sing with her, which was kinda cute," he said.

"I started to do my own band in middle school with some friends from school and around high school my brother and I started playing together, that was in about 2004 or 2005."

Harris has fond memories of performing at the former Lost Dog Café, or in the basement at the Ithaca Community School of Music and Arts.

"There used to be an internet café on Aurora Street that we played shows at," he said. "I remember being in plays at Ithaca High School, not related to the band at all but doing so many musicals on that stage. Just going back to that place to film some of the video for "Your Town" brought back so many memories."

“We moved to NYC, met our drummer Adam, and that’s where X Ambassadors was formed in 2007,” Harris said, explains that it wasn’t until about 2013 or 2014 that the band took on its current name, switching from just “The Ambassadors.”

Creative start, advice for budding musicians

Harris said that, as isolated as Ithaca can feel, it does have a vibrant and well-respected artistic community, which he felt luck to have backing him when he was younger.

“I’ve always wanted people to get a sense of where I grew up, because I think its so unique, so beautiful and for lack of a better word, so American,” he said. “In portraying my hometown on a bigger platform, I'm essentially being like, ‘Did anyone else grow up like this and feel like this?’ and the answer is yes. It’s been nice to put my hometown on the map, or at least try to.”

Harris said it wasn’t long ago that he was just a kid in his bedroom trying to get his feelings out through music, and had some words of wisdom for budding musicians, especially those who feel stuck where they are.

“In terms of the actual nuts and bolts of breaking into the music industry, there is no formula … I will say, pursue that sense of connection, and if you love making music, if it feels like a calling to you, try giving it your all for a few seconds,” he said. “Try feeling how it feels to devote yourself to the act. If you’re pursuing it for any loftier goals like fame, fortune, or likes and followers, don’t do it. You get all that stuff, and it doesn’t fill that void, but the act of creation really can.”

This article originally appeared on Ithaca Journal: X Ambassadors returning to Ithaca June 1