YORK, Pa. — 14-year-old Najeeb Moore Jr. learned to drum on paint cans, hub caps, and plastic buckets.
He recalls, “Most of my life, I was self-taught, most of my drumming, my career, I was self-taught, I taught myself.”
Despite years spent becoming the musician he is today, Moore acknowledges that maintaining his skill and continuing to improve requires constant practice. “It’s a lot of-a lot of practice like still to this day, I practice a lot," he says. "I spend hours and hours in my garage, down town, or just in my room coming up with things.”
It's his downtown performances that have started to gain Moore a local reputation. “You know everybody think it’s just my talent, just I just believe it’s my prayers and all that. So when I go down there, you know, I just play for everybody, I just play for the people," Moore says.
The teen puts the donations he gets for his street performances towards giving back to the less fortunate in York.
“I help out the homeless," Moore says. "Every time a homeless guy comes up, I always, you know, give him a few dollars, treat him to some McDonalds, make sure he’s good and all that.”
“It’s mostly because of the way I was raised plus it just feels right. It just feels right, just like a natural instinct.”
Moore says he also teaches kids to play drums and has plans to make a career out of his music by forming a group with other musicians: “It’s just something I love, it’s something I have a passion for.”