As co-owner of the store and co-founder of the Rhyme Sayers Entertainment label, Daley is among the most vital proponents of hip-hop in the Twin Cities. And as the lead mouthpiece and visionary of the group Atmosphere, which released its third full-length CD, "God Loves Ugly," on Tuesday, he is unquestionably the single biggest rapper in town. For now, anyway.

Locally, Daley's story is pretty well-known: He grew up in a broken home in south Minneapolis; oldest of three; got kicked around by girls enough times to have something to rap about; now has a 7-year-old son (Jacob) and a fixation on some mysterious woman named Lucy Ford.

Of greater interest is what's new. Atmosphere's CD is a 70-minute hoot of a concept album about one (ugly) man's desperate search for beauty. The first single, "Modern Man's Hustle," should get this guy some radio airplay with its Eminem-like, wacko-rapper vibe. What's more, the live version of Atmosphere has a new DJ, Mr. Dibbs, and backup rapper, Crescent Moon, who replace former recruits Eyedea and Abilities.

So when the 29-year-old Slug sat down for an interview, it seemed best to discuss the here and now.

Chris Riemenschneider

How much is Slug a character these days, and how much is he really you?

I don't have a clue. It has all kind of gelled. I went through my phase where I thought I had to entertain, not just on stage but like hanging out at a bar or somebody's house. Like I always had to be clever and witty, and I got pretty burnt out on the whole personality thing. I pretty much exhausted my emotions and just wound up being me.

Now, I think I do a better job of applying that to the music. Before, it was like I almost accidentally built up this image of what this rapper might be like, like you listening to the record in Fayetteville, Ark., could get an image of what I'm like. Now, I think I got a lot better at just showing what I'm really like and applying that to the music.

Based on the title and themes on this record, then, you must really consider yourself ugly?

Yeah, good call. It's not so much a hang-up or an insecurity, just the first step toward fixing my problems.

I think it's OK for me now to say, a) I'm not some famous rap star, but b) I'm mentally and skill-wise steps ahead of where I used to stand. So even though I didn't turn out to be America's favorite rapper, I became something I had no idea I would ever become. I got much further than I ever expected. I wanted to be Mr. Rap Star, but that was just a want. Now, in retrospect, I doubt I would want that, but I still came so much further than I ever thought I would. And to me, that is proof that God loves ugly, because there's not other excuse for why, doing it the way I did it, I could have gotten as far as I have.

No question, you've done well. How much further do you want to take Atmosphere?

I don't have any regrets at this point. If it stayed at this level for the next 10 years, I would be super pleased at what happened in my life. But the main reason why I would like to see it go farther is to benefit the people that helped me to get where I have. I had so much support from all these guys [gestures upstairs], that now that I'm starting to take off, I want it to reflect back on them.

Talk about the changes in Atmosphere's live lineup.

A lot of people outside the city thought Eyedea and Abilities were a part of Atmosphere. It confused a lot of people. They were like, "Where's the little nasal guy."

When [original co-rapper] Spawn left in '98, I would take Eyedea with me on the road just to do backup vocals and help make the show bounce more, more fun to watch. We did that until about a year and a half ago. We broke Eyedea off because one of the main reasons to get him on the road was to get him some exposure. But then when he won the Blaze battle [rap competition on HBO], the last thing he needed was more exposure. And then his record was done. He and Abilities had always been their own identity, and in fact, having Abilities DJ for Atmosphere, it was more like Eyedea & Abilities featuring Slug than the other way around.

How do Mr. Dibbs and Crescent Moon fit in Atmosphere?

When Eyedea & Abilities started touring, I had to find a new DJ and backup guy, so I had this guy named Precise from Chicago for a while, but he was busy with his own music. So I called my friend in Cincinnati named Mr. Dibbs, who I thought was incredible. He already done a lot on his own, but when I called, he wasn't doing anything, sitting on his ass. So I got him up off it.

And Crescent is such a good rapper, he fit in really easily. He brought a good, fresh voice to the mix, but since he does his own thing with Oddjobs, he doesn't try to push his own vision into Atmosphere. But I'm coming up on the same situation again with Crescent. I'll have him to promote "God Luves Ugly," but then in the fall he's going to be busy with his own group the Oddjobs. So I'm not certain if I'll get someone else or figure out how to do this without another person. Really, I just need somebody to sit at the merch table while I get drunk backstage.

The single, "Modern Man's Hustle," says every man's got a hustle, what's yours?

I mean that a little more ambiguously than it's worded. Man or woman, it's about things people do that -- good or bad -- they feel they have to do it. It's a weird metaphor for an issue in my personal life: "Why do you have to leave town again?" "Why do you have to go for two months?" That's what I have to deal with to get done what I think needs to be done.

A lot of things in my normal life are effected by the fact that this is how I make a living. Sometimes, you might no understand why someone does something, but you should at least start with the idea that they think what they're doing is good.

Lucy, whoever she is, is still a recurring character in your music. Isn't it time to move on?

There's no way I could have not put something in there. This was my way to dead it, or to hopefully dead it. She'll probably always affect my songs. But at least this time I'm pissed off at her. I wasn't crying like a baby.

Your combative references to Lucy and other women have gotten you pegged as something of a misogynist. What do you think?

I'm the innocent bystander. I'm the victim of the drive-by shooting. I really don't think there are any signs of anger or resentment over women in my songs.

I might have my problems. But most of those issues stem from the fact that I'm this puppy, and they're saying, "Come here, come here," and instead I'm peeing on the carpet because I don't know what to do. And ask my girlfriend, she knows I'm the most honest, loyal, [woman]-whipped man on the planet.

Do you think a better word is obsessive?

I'd definitely accept that. I think my mom has even used that word: "You're so obsessive."

You have drawn on your childhood in your music. Now that you're the father of a 7-year-old, how has that changed?

I see his situations, his decision-making, and I remember so much about when I was there. So it brings so many new thoughts to my head, things I'd never think of if I didn't have him around. It's safe to say I'm inspired by it, and am trying to use it, look back a lot .

I understand your son is into your music.

Yeah, he even asked the other day why Radio K is the only station that plays my music. I'm not lying. He asked his mom that, and she didn't have an answer. And of course neither do I.

I just think for the number of people who come to my shows and who buy my records in the Twin Cities alone, I compete with top 40 artists in that sense, but KMOJ and nobody outside of Radio K and some of the KFAI specialty shows plays my music.

It's sad, because I think 15 years ago it would have been a different story. Even when Prince was nobody, they were playing his stuff. And I'm not just talking about hip-hop. There are a lot of other artists who do incredibly well locally with record sales and concert tickets but they don't get played on the radio. I mean, D4 [Dillinger 4] should be on 93X. They sell records. They pack the house. They tour the world.

Is hip-hop the local music scene's next big thing?

I'm on the road too much to talk for certain about everything that's going on locally. But I can say, when I sit at a restaurant or hang out somewhere, I always see kids that I recognize from the hip-hop shows. You know, it can be some emo-core kid in his tight T-shirt, or a kid that plays in a hardcore band, and they're coming to our shows.

So I think it's crossed the barrier where hip-hop has become hip, and it's become entertaining to people who have nothing to do with hip-hop culture. They are appreciating it solely for the beats and the words and the vibe. And you don't see it working the other way, with hip-hop kids going to emocore or punk-rock shows. So on that alone, I'd say hip-hop is taking over.

If one of the other Rhyme Sayers became bigger than you, would you you'd be cool with that?

Emphasize this: [Expletive] yeah! The lights are hot. Take them off me.

You're definitely our towns' big fish, but are we still a small pond on the national hip-hop level?

Yeah, it's still pretty small. I think too many of the kids are just trying to get their props. I can speak for all the Rhyme Sayers artists when I say that hip-hop means more to them than that. And I can say that about a lot of others here, like that kid New from Kanser, and the Oddjobs. I see what they're bringing to the table and it's more than just getting our props. They're coming to the table with something to say. They have well thought-out deliveries of how to say it.

That's what I'm looking for. We need more of that. That's what it took for it to take off in places like New York and L.A. and Atlanta. It has to be more than just "I'm dope at this," it has to be more about the community, more about what an artist has to say, more than just a pastime, more than just a career, even.

Tell me something that few people know about you.

You know that video game Galaga? I can flip Galaga. I don't have a home game system, I'm not one of those guys, but I can stand there for three and a half hours and play Galaga until the machine shuts down, literally. Centipede, too.

Tell me something people think they know about you that isn't really true.

My parents are alive and well, and even proud of me. I get kids that come up to me and say, "My mom died, too," and that really, really sucks when that happens. I have to say, 'My mom's not really dead, dude.' You'd be surprised how many people get mad when they learn that. They're like, "Dude, you're not keeping it very real." You know, I'm just a rapper, it's just a song, don't take me too seriously.