Rapper Memphis Bleek, who's spent the last three years in the shadow of his mentor Jay-Z, finally releases his debut album this week.

"Coming of Age" features guest appearances by Noreaga, Ja Rule, and Jay-Z himself, who weighs in on the track "What U Think of That." But as Bleek himself is quick to point out, he can be a part of a scene while maintaining his own identity.

"A lot of camps that came out already, like the whole camp, sound exactly the same," Memphis Bleek told MTV News. "Like it's, like, four people from the same projects, and everybody's rapping about the same thing, which don't make no sense. Being that me and Jay[-Z] came from the same projects, he was the 'Big Willie' dude of the projects. I was the small fry. So we can't talk about the same thing, 'cause I don't know what he's done, you know what I'm saying? I only know what I've done. So I talk about the streets, and like I said, I speak for the unspoken." [RealVideo]

"Coming of Age" is in stores now, and the first single is called "Memph Bleek Is."