Atlanta has OutKast, New Orleans has Master P and St. Louis now has Nelly, the 21-year-old rapper whose single "(Hot S**t) Country Grammar" is climbing the rap chart.

Nelly credits the geographical vantage point of St. Louis for his sound, an amalgam of Southern, West Coast and East Coast flavors.

"In St. Louis, we get it from all over," he said. "It's not like if I was raised in the East and I was cut off from a lot of the South's music and a lot of the West's music or vise versa. With me being in the middle, I was just taking in everything I could get my hands on

— everybody from Scarface to Geto Boys to people like UGK, N.W.A, Jay-Z, Biggie and Pac."

The success of Nelly's single — now #3 on Billboard's Hot Rap Singles chart — has positioned the rapper as one of the most recognizable celebrities in St. Louis (joining the ranks of the late Redd Foxx and comedian Cedric the Entertainer).

Déjà Vu, music director and assistant program director for St. Louis' KATZ-FM says the station supported Nelly's record early. "We were on it before it actually got picked up by Universal," she said, stressing that Nelly and his group the St. Lunatics have been popular in their hometown for several years. "They had their own little independent project out that got a little airplay before we came on the scene, so they're very well-known in St. Louis."

Déjà Vu said the station gets "lots of requests" for Nelly's single, "(Hot S**t) Country Grammar" (RealAudio excerpt) which remains in hot rotation at the station. The song borrows a hook from the children's song "Down, Down Baby."

Nelly's upcoming debut, Country Grammar (June 9), is a collection of beat-driven stories of street-reality delivered in a unique rap-sing style. The album cut "Batter Up," which Nelly said represents his ascension in the rap world, opens with a snatch from the theme song from the sitcom "The Jeffersons."

Rising Up

Nelly (born Cornell Haynes Jr.) was nomadic as a child, moving from city to city because of his father's Air Force duties and his family's poor economic status.

"I was born in Texas but all my people are from St. Louis," Nelly said. "We were shipped over to Spain for a couple of years, and then I finally came back to St. Louis. When I was coming up, my people was poor as sh--. Still like that, majority of them. I was a bad little f---er, too. I was getting kicked outta schools."

Nelly said his family's financial situation stepped up his nomadic lifestyle. "My mom couldn't afford to keep me at one point so I went to live with my grandparents," he said. "And then I went to live with my old dude and he couldn't afford it, and I went back with my mom and she couldn't afford it. Then I went back to my old dude, and he couldn't afford it. It was just crazy. I been in like nine different schools."

He said he is surprised by his success and determined not to get too comfortable. "You always hope it'll do well, but you don't wanna settle," he said. "If I'm getting 1,000 spins, I want 1,500. I'm trying to look at everything that happens as something that was supposed to happen. I don't know what to expect next because I never been this far. I'm just floating right now."

The rapper started out as a member of the group St. Lunatics (members of which are featured on the tracks "Steal the Show" and "Wrap Sumden"). Nelly said he's now trying to open the door for his homeboys, who agreed to support him in his solo bid because they thought he had a better chance of success.

"It was just the timing as far as the feel, the type of music I was doing, the swing of it," Nelly said. "I'm just kicking open the door because the hole is so small right now as far as us getting out there. We figured one can probably get through the hole as opposed to five tryin' to squeeze through at one time. So if I can go in there and widen the hole so we can all get through, then it's all good. We tryin' to get there. Whoever can take us, it don't make us no difference."

Going With Emotions

Once considered a contender on the baseball field, Nelly said he opted not to pursue the sport professionally, choosing hip-hop instead. "One thing about baseball is you gotta be serious about it if you really want to succeed. That ain't nothin' that you can just jump in. A lotta people are finding that out — people like Michael Jordan and, I heard even Garth Brooks found that out."

Nelly said he felt he could succeed at baseball if he gave 100 percent of himself to the sport. But he's more entranced by the elusive quality of songwriting.

"As far as hip-hop, it can be more emotional," he said. "You may not have written a song for a year and then all of a sudden a song hits you and it's just the bomb, whereas with baseball, if you ain't played in a year and you try to hop back out there, I guarantee, you ain't the same. I don't give a damn who you are."

Nelly said he plans to build a facility for St. Louis youths interested in sports. "Sports can keep kids occupied until they can get their minds right to do other stuff," he said. "There's a lot of kids out there just waiting to do anything but they don't have anything, especially in St. Louis."

Déjà Vu said Nelly's success will have a positive effect on St. Louis. "I think it's definitely putting St. Louis on the map. A lot of talent is right here, and there are a lot of people who are progressive and trying to do their own little thing. ... I think it's time for the Midwest to blow up, and I think the year 2000 is the year they're gonna have to reckon with the Midwest."

Nelly said he hopes his success will shine the light on St. Louis and the Midwest. "That's exactly what we're shooting for. If we can bring any more cameras or any more helicopters or anybody who just wanna fly over and take a peep at what we doing, that's good."