"I first started rapping when I was eight years old," says Rampage. "I grew up with Busta (Rhymes) in the early eighties in East Flatbush, Brooklyn. We would pick up instruments, beat drums, even play guitars back then, you know, do anything to make a beat." Their ingenuity obviously paid off, with Busta garnering hip hop accolades with L
eaders of the New School, then cementing his place as one of rap's most intriguing characters, and Rampage set to launch his own hip hop assault.

"But my real musical know-how first showed when I'd listen to my Father and my Uncle play. They were both musicians," remembers Rampage. "So we'd sneak against my Uncle's door and listen to him play bass guitar. That's what inspired me to get into this game. He had drum machines and all that, and that's what inspired me and I'm sure it inspired Busta as well." The two cousins soon started making tapes together. Busta would play drums and Rampage would handle the guitar. Their early noizemaking, though slightly primitive, showed the first signs of the improvisation and wild playfulness that both rappers display on their albums. "I think when you grow up willing to bang on things like we did, you realize the importance of keeping it live sounding - keeping it surprising," says Rampage.

Rampage says he learned the professional side of the music industry - the benefits of putting together a more polished hip hop presentation - when Bustaand cohorts launched The Leaders of the New School. "It was like a training ground for me," he says. "It showed me the ropes, and how you had to struggle. How you had to vibe and stay together and be true to yourself without losing your focus." That focus led to Rampage signing on with Busta's own Flipmode production/management company, and the making of his soon to be released debut album, Scout's Honor...By Way of Blood.

But does rubbing elbows with the likes of Busta create more pressure? With the hip hop winds changing so fast, Rampage points out any rapper looking to deliver the goods in today's climate must not only be focused, but be willing to take risks to establish their own identity. "That's what Busta did," he says. "And if you look at me I come right at ya'. I don't slur my words, I bring it straight to your face. I'm about ruggedness, about bringing the fullest to you I can bring." Examples of the Rampage bravado can be heard on the new LP on cuts such as "Talk of the Town," and "Flipmode Enemy #1."

"I write off air," he says. "A lot of artists will talk about how they have to get a dope beat before they can come up with some words. I've always liked to freestyle. I write words that just come into my head a lot of times with no beats to back me up. I'll envision it and then I'll put it to beats. I'm the lyrical lieutenant of The Flipmode squad," he laughs. "You shoulda' saw how we came up with the hook for "Wild For The Night." Busta was like: