National Rap/Hip-Hop Act

Virtuoso

Boston beats and rhymes

The young Cambridge rhyme-slinger who calls himself Virtuoso snags Best Music Poll honors for the second year in a row, this time beating out both a favorite challenger (Mr. Lif) and a Beantown legend (Ed O.G.). Though he hasn't released a single since 1998's blazing "Incinerator" (Brick), Virtuoso maintained a Boston presence by guesting on the Skitzofreniks' On My Own Sh!t EP (Brick) and rocking crowds with his unrelenting flow of scientific similes at local club shows. But it's not only Boston heads who are hip to Virtuoso's hyper-rhyme style. Japanese B-boy DJ Krush liked "Incinerator" enough to include the track on his new mix CD, Code 4109 (Red Ink). The road from underground obscurity to international props has been surprisingly short for Boston's tight-knit crew of independent-minded MCs. Perhaps the best representative of this spectacular growth is this year's first runner-up, Mr. Lif, who has risen from hometown fave to Beastie-approved rapper in less than two years. There's no doubt that Boston's hip-hop scene still pales in comparison to New York's, or LA's, or the Bay Area's. But with freestyle sessions staking out a spot on the Middle East schedule, a new 12-inch from Virtuoso due this summer, and upcoming full-lengths from 7L & Esoteric, Mr. Lif, and Ed O.G., Mr. Lif has his hopes up. "The stage we're in is like New York in '88," Lif says, "before things erupted. This is our Wild Style era -- we're about to come out and redefine."

-- Michael Endelman