By Jesse Beer-Dietz

For those who’ve been asking, “Where’s the hip-hop?” we’ve got you covered this week with a peek at a super-talented artist, and for something completely different, check out my interview with 2Cellos. By the way, Wheels 2.0 will be getting a complete facelift in the coming weeks, so keep an eye out for the cool new features we’ll be unveiling. And keep feedin’ the inbox: jesse.beerdietz@hitsmagazine.com

SPOTLIGHT
Najee (https://www.facebook.com/najeethe1): Hailing from New York, this dynamic young rapper got his start on HBO's Def Poetry Jam. Since then, he’s released several mixtapes and free albums online as well as having his music featured by ESPN, Nike6, Lexus, Etnies and Sonos, and on an upcoming episode of VH1's T.O. Show. His breakout song, “This World,” was produced by the legendary beat-maker Ski Beatz on the album 24 Hour Karate School 2. Najee was recently profiled in the N.Y. Times, while recording new music at Converse’s Rubber Tracks Studios. He’s currently working on his next album, to be titled Settle for Greatness. For more info, contact manager Marat Berenstein (marat@hitmemusic.com).

EMAIL Q&A WITH 2CELLOS
When did you guys start playing the cello, was it something you’d always wanted to do?
When we were very young, when we first heard the cello, the sound was so warm and beautiful…it is closest to the human voice, and we knew straight away this is the only instrument we wanted to play.

How did you guys first meet?
We met in different master classes and competitions as teenagers in Croatia. The funny thing is that everyone considered us to be the biggest rivals as we were two of the most prominent young cellists from Croatia, but in fact we were best friends!

How did you come up with the concept of creating these amazing pieces of pop/rock music with just the two cellos?
There are many reasons for this: Our playing was always full of energy and adrenaline and there was always a rock animal inside of us that wanted to explode. So, we were always rockers in the soul! Also, we were frustrated to play for small audiences in little halls with a few old people and no young people. We wanted to attract wider audiences, especially many kids, to this great instrument and to great music in general. Also, in classical music, you play notes that exist for 200 years and you cannot really change and explore much. With this project, we can explore and extend cello possibilities and technique to the maximum. Our goal was to revolutionize cello as an instrument.

I had the pleasure of seeing you guys live at Largo the other night, and your time and chemistry are quite impressive. How long did it take you to master that and be able to play so brilliantly off one another?
Chemistry is something you cannot master, either you have it from the very start or not. We just started playing together few months ago, and it seems to us like we have been playing together our whole lives

Final question: What's the song you guys have the most fun playing?
Every song brings a different mood and emotion, and each has different qualities. We love to play all of our arrangements!