There must be something in the waters of Lake Minnetonka.

If you need proof, just look at the roster of talented artists who spent significant time there. Prince was born and raised there. Punk giant Husker Du hails from Minneapolis. Even Bob Dylan grew up not far away.

The most recent musical miracle to hail from Minneapolis is Atmosphere, a rap duo that has braved the underground scene since 1994. If you need some evidence of its street cred, Atmosphere's first releases were a series of seven cassette tapes, only one of which has been released in CD form.

The signature of the band is a lyric-centric, storytelling style akin. Sean Daley, a.k.a. Slug, is the main rapper for the duo, while Anthony Davis, a.k.a. Ant, has produced every Atmosphere album. The group has been nominated for two mtvU Woodie Awards, including one for Artist of the Year, on the strength of its single, "Say Hey There." Slug said the success came as a shock to him.

"I'm quite confused that my music appeals to anybody, and I'm glad mtvU is recognizing us for the music we make," Slug said jokingly. "I'm not trying to be ironic, I'm just really confused about why people like our music."

The video's success on mtvU is particularly surprising if one considers that Atmosphere is the only independently represented artist nominated for Artist of the Year. He even helped found his own record label, Rhymesayers Entertainment, which is based in Minneapolis.

Slug said he was reluctant to make a video at first, but once he got into the process, he was more open to the concept.

"I always saw videos as commercials for songs," he said. "Don't get me wrong; when I was 15, I loved Yo! MTV Raps with a passion. Some of the people at the label I work with pretty much begged me to make a video for a song. When I was doing it, I just got a whole new look at it. You're given a chance to give that much more of a basis behind what that song's about."

After playing the underground rap scene in Minneapolis for eight years, Atmosphere finally found national fame with its 2002 release, God Loves Ugly. The album hit number one on Billboard's Top Heatseekers chart, which highlights new and developing artists. However, Slug said getting a foot in the door was not necessarily the goal for the group.

"I'm not putting my foot nowhere," Slug said. "It's part of this natural progress, I guess. We gave our video to MTV and mtvU to be really cute, like 'It would be cool if it got played,' and it got played."

Perhaps it was Atmosphere's left-of-center approach to rap that kept the group off the charts for so long, or perhaps it was Slug's unconventional modesty.

"Quite honestly, I bore myself," Slug said. "Who cares how I feel about stuff? I'd much rather discuss stuff related to what I do. Who cares about my last record? Let's talk about how important it was that Ice Cube and Chuck D made a collaboration in 1993."

Slug cited his upbringing and music influences growing up as reasons why he may be viewed as different from other rappers.

"As a kid, when I was finding my identity, I was caught in a world of rap that was very righteous, very afro-centric," Slug said. "I think a part of that is a big part of who I am as a person now. And it does come through on my records as well. 'You don't rap about b------- and bling!' Well come on, are you serious? I'm f------ 34 years old."

Slug said the artists who had the biggest effect on him during that period were KRS-One, Chuck D, Big Daddy Kane and X-Clan, all of whom are known for their socially conscious lyrics.

Besides his social awareness, Slug also puts an emphasis on storytelling in his songs. He said no matter what the meaning behind the story, the listener can still take something away from it.

"To me, the difference is, can you get the listener involved to the point where the can get into the story, even if they're totally misinterpreting the story, if they're applying it to their own life," he said. "When you listen to Scarface's story, you actually feel as if there's a gun to the back of your head."

If Slug's pride in his hometown doesn't show through his stories, it certainly shows through his career decisions. While he may have made it big had he moved to New York or Los Angeles, he stayed in Minneapolis and built his legend there. He said his pride in his hometown is one of the things that he learned growing up.

"It's one of the rules, man," he said. "The rules are, you bring your boys with you, you're proud of where you came from, and you don't let anybody say anything about your mama. And I'm proud of the mid-west. You kind of got to love where you live."

In the Land of 10,000 Lakes, maybe there really is something in the water.