X2 represent everything that’s right with the youths of London today. Together Ali & Zack have fought the stereotypes that listening to rap music makes you a thug, being young makes you naïve, and not being in college makes you a dropout. However, these two quick-witted young men are fighting all types of obstacles to be where they are now. And they show no signs of slowing down.
So how did you guys start off making music?
Ali: Well I always used to write and had books and books full of lyrics in my bedroom. The problem was I didn't have access to a studio or any sort of musical equipment. Due to this, I naturally assumed my lyrics would always stay like that. However, one day a friend introduced me to a guy called K2 who just happened to have a studio in his house and he lived quite close to me. I couldn't believe it! He invited me to his house and I bought Zack along and we recorded something of the top.
Zack: Yeah I mean we naturally got along with K2 and it ended up with him not only being our producer but also like a brother to us, we wouldn’t of got this far without him.
What or who inspired you to start?
Zack: For me it all started in year 7. I know its kinda young but this was way before I knew anything about the genres of Hip-Hop or Rap. Me and my mates would always be trying to rhyme random sentences together. Instantly I found myself quite good and quick at it.
Ali: I was kinda the same, I used to have rap battles at lunchtimes, get good grades for poetry homework and generally being known as the "rapper" in school. I found myself enjoying this new found talent a lot. So I started writing what I was thinking and expressing my feelings through rap. My thoughts soon turned to words, words turned to sentences and eventually, those sentences got structured into versus and hooks and turned into songs.
Zack:[Laughs] Haa, he makes it sound like a machine!
So you two seem to really connect well together, how did this friendship start?
Zack:[Laughs] Haha yeah…we didn’t really get off to the best of starts…to be honest I was kinda jealous of this kid, like I remember sitting there thinking “Damn! This kid is better than me!” But my jealousy soon turned into inspiration, I really wanted him on a track of mine, and he was down so it went from there.
Ali: Its weird that he says that because like, he’s older than me, and lyrically better than me, so when he asked me to work with him on a track, of course I was down, I mean who wouldn’t be?
So if you two hadn’t met and weren’t making music, what would you be doing with your life?
Ali: I used love making money as a kid. So I would probably channel that interest in some sort of business or something.
Zack: Apart from the whole rap game, I always loved biology, I know it sounds unusual but I was always fascinated by that sort of stuff so I would probably be doing something in that area.
When you’re both writing bars, what’s the process?
Ali: If someone has asks us to jump on a track they would usually have a topic from which all our bars would bleed out of. If I'm writing on my own I usually don't have a concept or beat at all. I just write what I'm thinking and then those bars get made into a song, then Zack adds his verse and that’s how most of our songs are made.
Zack: Yeah I mean when I’m writing, when something inspires me, like something that has occurred that day. I need to write it down that instant otherwise I know I’ll forget it
Ali: Shockingly…
So what inspires you to write?
Zack: Anything and everything in life. That can range from memories to people or experiences to current events. I’d say recently a lot of things have been inspiring us to write, like we’ve had a tough time trying to do what we love and like, you can only imagine the struggle we’ve had to get here. So stuff like that definitely helps.
Ali: Yeah definitely like every single life experience can be turned into a line, sometimes we surprise ourselves because the most average of days would help us to write a sick verse.
What artists/groups do you have on your iPod?
Zack: Me & Ali have literally exactly the same taste in music, you wouldn’t be able to tell whose iPod was whose but you would find all sorts, from Usher to Chipmunk, Raxstar to Bow Wow and 2pac to Jay Sean!
If you could support ONE artist on tour, who would it be?
Ali: If I could support someone on tour, It would be Jay Sean. He's a guy I really look up to and he inspires me a lot for what he's achieved.
Zack: Ali stole my answer! Its mad how we have the same taste, but yeah its cause Jay Sean has a similar background which is why he inspires us, so yeah, same answer.
Lastly, if you if you could collab with any artist in the world, who would it be?
Zack: Ahhhh that’s hard, If I could collab with anyone on the planet, it would have to be Drake or Eminem. Those guys are two of my favourite rappers and a collaboration with any one of them would be a dream come true.
Ali: Hmmm I would say the same except instead of Drake, although he is insane, I would say Dr. Dre. To have Dre produce a track of ours would blow my mind, he is a genius.
Thanks to X2 for their time, their debut album “Intuition” hits stores 24th April 2011.
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