Hip-Hop Report 

The rapper changes his style to distance himself from would-be copycats. 
By SOREN BAKER

t hip-hop's onset, rappers incorporated pop culture references into their lyrics and videos as a way of identifying with their fans and with other artists.
     Run-DMC's "My Adidas" and Schoolly D's "Gucci Time" were just two prominent songs from the mid-1980s that used name-dropping to establish a bond with the audience.
     Now that rap is a billion-dollar business and competition for attention is high, rappers are drawing from pop culture to distance themselves from one another.
     Case in point: "Melvin Flynt--Da Hustler," the new album by Noreaga that was released last week by Penalty Recordings. The "Melvin" portion of the Noreaga title comes from Jack Nicholson's obsessive character in the Oscar-winning "As Good as It Gets," while "Flynt--Da Hustler" refers to controversial porn mogul Larry Flynt and his most famous magazine.
     The rapper, whose real name is Victor Santiago, took this turn because he felt that too many artists were mimicking his work.
     "I felt like people were biting my style, so in order to differentiate me from the phonies, I had to change up my style," the rapper said. "I've got to make myself different from those biters.
     "I wanted to come up with a concept that nobody would think of. If they did bite, it would be so obvious. So I came up with two arrogant-ass white boys."
     Noreaga, one of New York's most popular rappers, enjoys the brutal honesty of Nicholson's character and the multiple implications inherent in the Flynt name, incorporating traits of both personalities into a number of songs on the album.
     He also comments on a number of police brutality cases in his hometown in "Flagrant Cops," while "First Day Home" discusses the pressure former prison inmates face in returning to society.
     This isn't the first time Noreaga, 21, has used high-profile characters for inspiration. His rap moniker itself comes from the infamous former Panamanian strongman Manuel Noriega.
     Noreaga catapulted to stardom in the duo Capone-N-Noreaga when 1997's brutal "The War Report" became an underground smash. Their frank discussion of their drug-dealing past earned Capone-N-Noreaga authenticity points in the hard-to-impress hip-hop community.
     With Capone jailed for a parole violation when it was time to record another album, Noreaga released "N.O.R.E." last year. The solo debut, driven by stellar production and Noreaga's signature stop-and-go delivery, sold more than 125,000 copies its first week of release.
     Perhaps more than any other New York rap artist, Noreaga has sought out work with lesser-known acts from other areas. He appeared on the album by Mississippi's Crooked Lettaz as well as forthcoming releases from Tennessee's Project Pat and Los Angeles' Caffeine.
     "I was out of town listening to their music," Noreaga explains. "Not only do I like their music, but they're real individuals. I had to hook up with them. I want to show people that I'm versatile. I'm not only going to kick it New York-style. I'm going to kick it any style that I can go to."
     That type of creative drive makes Noreaga one of the genre's most exciting artists.
     "I want to be different," he says. "I know I'm from Queens, and people may feel that me and Capone rhyme like people from Queens. I can switch, change, do whatever. I feel that that is what makes me a great rhymer."