# N.O.R.E.
**N.O.R.E.** (born Victor Santiago Jr.) is an American rapper and media personality from Queens, New York City, known as one half of the East Coast hip hop duo [Capone-N-Noreaga](https://www.edgepedia.org/capone-n-noreaga) (C-N-N) and as co-host, with DJ EFN, of the hip-hop interview podcast Drink Champs.[1](https://drinkchamps.com/about/) He first recorded under the name Noreaga, borrowed from the Panamanian former military commander [Manuel Noriega](https://www.edgepedia.org/manuel-noriega), and later shortened it to N.O.R.E., an acronym for "Niggas On the Run Eating".[2](https://www.universal-music.co.jp/nore/biography/) • [3](https://mn2s.com/booking-agency/talent-roster/n-o-r-e/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | Victor Santiago Jr., 1977, Queens, New York (one profile gives 1976); raised in Lefrak City[4](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/nore-mn0000374888) • [5](https://ir.mtu.edu.ng/article/n-o-r-e-profile-of-the-rapper-career-highlights-and-legacy) • [6](https://hiphopdx.com/artist/n-o-r-e/) |
| Duo debut | *The War Report* with Capone, released June 17, 1997 on Tommy Boy Records[7](https://music.apple.com/us/album/the-war-report/1604624690) |
| Solo debut | *N.O.R.E.* (July 7, 1998), No. 3 on the Billboard 200, over a million copies sold, featuring the Neptunes-produced "Superthug"[6](https://hiphopdx.com/artist/n-o-r-e/) • [3](https://mn2s.com/booking-agency/talent-roster/n-o-r-e/) |
| Reggaeton bridge | "Oye Mi Canto" (2004) helped bring reggaeton to African-American audiences[8](https://time.com/6104431/loud-spotify-podcast-reggaeton-history/) |
| Podcast | Drink Champs, co-hosted with DJ EFN since 2016; 17.6 billion watch minutes over its first decade[9](https://www.vice.com/en/article/n-o-r-e-on-10-years-of-drink-champs-his-beef-with-new-school-rappers-how-podcasts-have-changed-and-making-grown-up-music-exclusive/) |
| Labels | Penalty, Roc-La-Familia, Def Jam, Babygrande, Mass Appeal, among others[1](https://drinkchamps.com/about/) • [4](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/nore-mn0000374888) |
## Capone-N-Noreaga
Santiago met Kiam "Capone" Holley in 1992 while both were serving prison sentences.[4](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/nore-mn0000374888) The pair formed Capone-N-Noreaga, whose initials C-N-N echoed the news network, and signed to Penalty Records in 1996.[4](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/nore-mn0000374888) Their debut album, *The War Report*, was released on June 17, 1997 through [Tommy Boy Records](https://www.edgepedia.org/tommy-boy-records) and is widely regarded as a classic of late-1990s New York street rap.[7](https://music.apple.com/us/album/the-war-report/1604624690) • [6](https://hiphopdx.com/artist/n-o-r-e/) The Queensbridge rapper and producer Tragedy Khadafi, who had taken the duo under his wing, appears on more than half of the album's songs and served as executive producer.[7](https://music.apple.com/us/album/the-war-report/1604624690) • [10](https://www.iheart.com/content/2022-06-17-june-17-in-hip-hop-history-capone-n-noreaga-drop-debut-album/)
Capone's role in the duo was repeatedly interrupted by incarceration. After Holley was sent back to jail on a parole violation shortly after the debut's release, Santiago began recording solo material.[4](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/nore-mn0000374888) The duo reunited for *The Reunion* in 2000 and later released *Lessons* in 2016.[6](https://hiphopdx.com/artist/n-o-r-e/) • [11](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2022/09/19/the-good-spirits-of-drink-champs)
## Solo career
**The 1998 breakthrough.** Santiago's solo debut, *N.O.R.E.*, released on July 7, 1998, outperformed the duo's debut, charting at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 and selling over a million copies.[3](https://mn2s.com/booking-agency/talent-roster/n-o-r-e/) • [6](https://hiphopdx.com/artist/n-o-r-e/) Its lead single, "Superthug", was produced by [The Neptunes](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-neptunes) ([Pharrell Williams](https://www.edgepedia.org/pharrell-williams) and [Chad Hugo](https://www.edgepedia.org/chad-hugo)) and became one of that production duo's early high-profile hip-hop productions; RapReviews later argued the song could be called the single that broke the Neptunes as producers.[12](https://drinkchamps.com/episode-241-w-pharrell-drinkchamps/) • [13](https://www.rapreviews.com/2002/07/n-o-r-e-gods-favorite/) The album also featured contributions from Foxy Brown, Nas, Busta Rhymes, and Jay-Z, among others.[4](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/nore-mn0000374888)
His second album, *Melvin Flynt – Da Hustler* (1999), went gold.[6](https://hiphopdx.com/artist/n-o-r-e/) *God's Favorite*, his third solo album, was delayed several times before appearing on Def Jam in mid-2002.[4](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/nore-mn0000374888) • [2](https://www.universal-music.co.jp/nore/biography/) Later releases include *N.O.R.E. y la Familia...Ya Tú Sabe* (2006), a mostly reggaeton album with guests including [Nina Sky](https://www.edgepedia.org/nina-sky), Big Mato, and [Daddy Yankee](https://www.edgepedia.org/daddy-yankee); *Noreality* (2007) on Babygrande; *Student of the Game* (2013), issued through [Busta Rhymes](https://www.edgepedia.org/busta-rhymes)' Conglomerate label partnership with E1 Music; and *5E* (2018) on Mass Appeal.[4](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/nore-mn0000374888) • [1](https://drinkchamps.com/about/) His solo singles "Superthug", "Banned from T.V.", "Nothin'", "Oye Mi Canto", and "Mas Maiz" are the ones his official biography highlights.[1](https://drinkchamps.com/about/)
## Reggaeton
N.O.R.E. became an early bridge between hip hop and reggaeton. In 2004, Daddy Yankee replaced the singer Noriega had originally worked with on "Oye Mi Canto", a record that helped bring the genre to African-American audiences.[8](https://time.com/6104431/loud-spotify-podcast-reggaeton-history/) In a 2006 interview with MTV, he said of the music, "I fell in love with this music... Why not do it with this new music, instead of doing a Spanish rap record?"[14](https://cdnc.heyzine.com/files/uploaded/637b4f6f9ba41478c843cf354ba2ec6a26868958.pdf) The 2006 album *N.O.R.E. y la Familia...Ya Tú Sabe* enlisted Latin music stars including [Don Omar](https://www.edgepedia.org/don-omar), Ivy Queen, and Yaga & Mackie.[15](https://theboombox.com/the-evolution-n-o-r-e-from-c-n-n-to-5e/)
## Drink Champs
**The show.** In 2016, N.O.R.E. and the Miami hip-hop pioneer DJ EFN launched Drink Champs, a long-form interview podcast in which guests, mostly rappers and producers, talk over drinks for two or three hours at a time.[9](https://www.vice.com/en/article/n-o-r-e-on-10-years-of-drink-champs-his-beef-with-new-school-rappers-how-podcasts-have-changed-and-making-grown-up-music-exclusive/) • [11](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2022/09/19/the-good-spirits-of-drink-champs) The pair had already worked together in Miami before the show began.[16](https://www.revolt.tv/article/drink-champs-dj-efn-nore-fast-facts) EFN, a longtime Miami promoter, producer, and mixtape DJ, balances N.O.R.E.'s tipsy zeal with context-setting questions.[11](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2022/09/19/the-good-spirits-of-drink-champs) N.O.R.E. has explained the show's ethos with the line, "If you can't handle your liquor, you aren't a drink champ."[16](https://www.revolt.tv/article/drink-champs-dj-efn-nore-fast-facts)
The show's guests have included Grandmaster Caz, Lil Wayne, Snoop Dogg, and [Kanye West](https://www.edgepedia.org/kanye-west), and [The New Yorker](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-new-yorker)'s Hua Hsu, a staff writer at the magazine, described it as producing some of the best interviews in hip-hop, functioning almost as an oral history of how the industry used to work.[11](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2022/09/19/the-good-spirits-of-drink-champs) June 11, 2026 marked the show's tenth anniversary, by which point it had amassed 17.6 billion watch minutes across the decade.[9](https://www.vice.com/en/article/n-o-r-e-on-10-years-of-drink-champs-his-beef-with-new-school-rappers-how-podcasts-have-changed-and-making-grown-up-music-exclusive/) N.O.R.E. and EFN have never sold the brand itself, despite distribution deals with several major media companies over the years.[17](https://legalclarity.org/who-owns-drink-champs-founders-deals-and-rights/)
**The Ye interview.** In late 2022, Kanye West appeared on the show for more than three hours and made antisemitic statements; the interview went viral and was later removed.[11](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2022/09/19/the-good-spirits-of-drink-champs) • [18](https://www.cinemablend.com/streaming-news/how-diddy-involved-with-kanye-west-viral-antisemitic-interview) N.O.R.E. later reflected that while he was editing the video he fielded a phone call from Sean "Diddy" Combs, then head of the Revolt network, which distributed the show, who shared thoughts on it.[18](https://www.cinemablend.com/streaming-news/how-diddy-involved-with-kanye-west-viral-antisemitic-interview)
## Identity and background
N.O.R.E. is of African American and Puerto Rican descent, and grew up in Lefrak City in the South Corona neighborhood of Queens.[6](https://hiphopdx.com/artist/n-o-r-e/) His stage name Noreaga was borrowed from the name of Manuel Noriega, the former commander of Panama's defense forces, whom he admired; after moving to Def Jam he changed the spelling to N.O.R.E.[2](https://www.universal-music.co.jp/nore/biography/) Sources disagree on his birth date: AllMusic and HipHopDX list September 6, 1977, while one career profile gives September 7, 1976.[4](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/nore-mn0000374888) • [6](https://hiphopdx.com/artist/n-o-r-e/) • [5](https://ir.mtu.edu.ng/article/n-o-r-e-profile-of-the-rapper-career-highlights-and-legacy)
Beyond music and podcasting, he has run the food series *On the Run Eatin'* on Complex, partnered with the Colorado cannabis company Cherry on a strain called Superthug OG, and in 2026 ran the NYC Half Marathon with his crew Run Champs.[15](https://theboombox.com/the-evolution-n-o-r-e-from-c-n-n-to-5e/) • [3](https://mn2s.com/booking-agency/talent-roster/n-o-r-e/) • [19](https://www.hot97.com/interviews/n-o-r-e-goes-from-war-report-to-run-champs-premieres-new-haircut-live/)
## References
1. [About – Drink Champs](https://drinkchamps.com/about/)
2. [N.O.R.E. Biography, Universal Music Japan](https://www.universal-music.co.jp/nore/biography/)
3. [N.O.R.E. | Booking Agent, MN2S](https://mn2s.com/booking-agency/talent-roster/n-o-r-e/)
4. [N.O.R.E. Biography by John Bush, AllMusic](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/nore-mn0000374888)
5. [N.O.R.E.: Profile of the Rapper, Career Highlights, and Legacy](https://ir.mtu.edu.ng/article/n-o-r-e-profile-of-the-rapper-career-highlights-and-legacy)
6. [N.O.R.E. Archives, HipHopDX](https://hiphopdx.com/artist/n-o-r-e/)
7. [The War Report – Album by Capone-N-Noreaga, Apple Music](https://music.apple.com/us/album/the-war-report/1604624690)
8. [Reggaeton Is So Much More Than Party Music, Time](https://time.com/6104431/loud-spotify-podcast-reggaeton-history/)
9. [N.O.R.E. on 10 Years of 'Drink Champs', Vice](https://www.vice.com/en/article/n-o-r-e-on-10-years-of-drink-champs-his-beef-with-new-school-rappers-how-podcasts-have-changed-and-making-grown-up-music-exclusive/)
10. [June 17 In Hip-Hop History: Capone-N-Noreaga Drop Debut Album, iHeart](https://www.iheart.com/content/2022-06-17-june-17-in-hip-hop-history-capone-n-noreaga-drop-debut-album/)
11. [The Good Spirits of "Drink Champs", The New Yorker](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2022/09/19/the-good-spirits-of-drink-champs)
12. [Episode 241 w/ Pharrell, Drink Champs](https://drinkchamps.com/episode-241-w-pharrell-drinkchamps/)
13. [N.O.R.E. :: God's Favorite, RapReviews](https://www.rapreviews.com/2002/07/n-o-r-e-gods-favorite/)
14. [The Evolution of Reggaeton (MTV 2006 interview quotation)](https://cdnc.heyzine.com/files/uploaded/637b4f6f9ba41478c843cf354ba2ec6a26868958.pdf)
15. [The Evolution of N.O.R.E.: From C-N-N to '5E', The Boombox](https://theboombox.com/the-evolution-n-o-r-e-from-c-n-n-to-5e/)
16. [10 facts about N.O.R.E., DJ EFN, and "Drink Champs", Revolt](https://www.revolt.tv/article/drink-champs-dj-efn-nore-fast-facts)
17. [Who Owns Drink Champs? Founders, Deals and Rights, LegalClarity](https://legalclarity.org/who-owns-drink-champs-founders-deals-and-rights/)
18. [How Diddy Was Involved With Kanye West's Viral Antisemitic Interview, CinemaBlend](https://www.cinemablend.com/streaming-news/how-diddy-involved-with-kanye-west-viral-antisemitic-interview)
19. [N.O.R.E. Goes From War Report to Run Champs, Hot 97](https://www.hot97.com/interviews/n-o-r-e-goes-from-war-report-to-run-champs-premieres-new-haircut-live/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Music › Music scenes › Transnational genre scenes › Hip hop scenes worldwide › Artists, groups, and people: Hip hop scenes worldwide › East Coast rap (New York and Philadelphia) › Golden era East Coast rap (1980s–1990s)*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 17, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 17, 2026; Oct 12, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license