One way to make it in this business is by having a great voice. Another is to marry a big-cheese music mogul. Latin pop singer Thalia has both bases covered.

With nearly a decade's worth of albums in her wake, the Mexican singer/actress, who wed former Sony Music chief Tommy Mottola in 2000, is dropping her first English language album, Thalia. Thalia, following in the crossover footsteps of Shakira and the aisle-walking ones of Mariah Carey, is poised to break in the States thanks to a lead afforded by the single "I Want You," featuring Fat Joe.

With momentum of the quirky, cute and incredibly infectious "Cameltoe" behind them, Brooklyn quintet Fannypack have released their debut, So Stylistic. Three female singers and two male DJs using old-school beats and rhymes as hot as the weather, Fannypack may have created the party album of the summer (see " 'Cameltoe' Making An Impression On Booty Shakers, Bagel Buyers").

While it's not entirely new Used material, the Utah quartet's Maybe Memories features live tracks and outtakes from the Used's self-titled debut as well as the demos of unreleased tracks "It Could Be a Good Excuse" and "Zero Mechanism." The CD/DVD package also includes more than 100 minutes of home video footage and the band's four videos (see "The Used Offer Old 'Memories' In New CD/DVD Package").

Beth Orton takes on a cover of Cat Stevens' "Wild World," which is then followed by the original, on the soundtrack to "How To Deal." Sky Sweetman's "Billy S.," as wall as tracks from the Donnas, Flaming Lips, John Mayer and Liz Phair are also included.

Wu-Tang associate Killah Priest returns to the pulpit with Black August, the rapper's fourth album, and former Van Halen frontman David Lee Roth is out to prove that he can still kick it in spandex on his seventh solo album, Diamond Dave.

Here's what notable releases drop this week:

Out Tuesday, July 8:

• 10 Foot Ganja - Plant Midnight Landing (ROIR)
• Aceyalone & Abstract Rude - Lab Down Under  (Basement)
• Bardo Pond - On the Ellipse (ATP)
• Big Bad Voodoo Daddy - Save My Soul (Vanguard)
• The Clientele - Violet Hour (Merge)
• Club 8 - Strangely Beautiful (Hidden Agenda)
• Faith and the Muse - The Burning Season (Metropolis)
• Fannypack - So Stylistic (Tommy Boy)
• Fictional - Fiction (Metropolis)
• Figure Four - Suffering the Loss (Solid State)
• The Flesh - Death Connection (EP, Kanine)
• Grand Incredible - GI-gantic (BEC/Tooth & Nail)
• Colin Hay - Man at Work (Compass)
• cEvin Key/Ken Marshall - The Dragon Experience (Metropolis)
• Killah Priest - Black August (Recon)
• Klute - Lie, Cheat & Steal/You Should Be Ashamed (Breakbeat Science)
• Kris Kristofferson - Broken Freedom Song: Live from San Francisco (Oh Boy!)
• Vic Latino - Summer Vibes (Tommy Boy)
• The Magic Band - Back to the Front (ATP)
• Peter Malick - New York City (EP, Koch)
• Mêlée - Against the Tide (EP, Hopeless)
• Ras Michael - A Weh Dem a Go Do Wid It (ROIR)
• Sarah Jane Morris - Love and Pain (Instinct)
• Pretenders - Time Remixes by Junior Vasquez (EP, Artemis)
• David Lee Roth - Diamond Dave (Magna Carta)
• The Shocker - Up Your Ass Tray (EP, Little Pusher/Oglio)
• Slick Shoes - Far from Nowhere (SideOneDummy)
• Sparks - Lil' Beethoven (Palm Pictures)
• Thalia - Thalia (Virgin)
• Tractor Kings - Gone to Heaven (Mud/Parasol)
• TV on the Radio - Young Liars (Touch and Go)
• Unto Ashes - Empty Into White (Projekt)
• The Used - Maybe Memories (Warner Bros.)
  Read "The Used Offer Old 'Memories' In New CD/DVD Package"
  Buy Now: Maybe Memories (Warner Bros.)
  
• Von Zippers - The Crime Is Now (Estrus)
• Woggles - Ragged but Right (Telstar)
• Woke Up Falling - It's Only Your Ghost (EP, Post436)
• Yes - Remix Album (Rhino)
• Various artists - A Mess of Our Favorites, Vol. 2 (Paisley Pop)
• Various artists - Get the Blues 2 (NARM)
• Various artists - "How to Deal" soundtrack (Capitol)
• Various artists - Latin Christmas (Concord Picante)
• Various artists - Live at Telluride (Frog Pad)
• Various artists - "Rise — The Story of Rave Outlaw Disco Donnie" soundtrack (Utensil)

July 15:

• Chingy - Jackpot (Capitol)
  Read: "Chingy Set To Hit The Jackpot With Ludacris, Murphy Lee"
• Keith Murray - He's Keith Murray (Def Jam)
• RX Bandits - The Resignation (Drive-Thru/MCA)
• Various artists - "Bad Boys II" soundtrack (Bad Boy)
  Read: "50 Cent, Biggie, Justin Timberlake On 'Bad Boys 2' Soundtrack"

July 22:

• Jane's Addiction - Strays (Capitol)
  Read: "Jane's Addiction Breathe, Gush And Pump All Over Hypersonic"
  Buy Now: Strays (Capitol)
  
• Kiss - Symphony: Alive IV (Sanctuary)
  Buy Now: Symphony: Alive IV (Sanctuary)
  

August 5:

• Various artists - The Neptunes Present: Clones (Arista)
  Read: "Summer Music Preview: Neptunes' Star Trak Presents ... Clones"

August 19:

• Tamia - Still (Elektra)

September 2:

• Mariah Carey - Remixes (Sony)

• FannyPack
• The Used
• Killah Priest
• Thalia
• Mandy Moore

Redman
Photo: Def Jam

HOLLYWOOD — Redman crashed the Lyricist Lounge Tour on Tuesday, igniting the hip-hop showcase with star power and some much-needed variety.

A half-full, half-asleep House of Blues crowd awoke when the rapper joined Erick Sermon onstage for a rendition of their single, "React."

Redman, who was originally scheduled to co-headline the tour but pulled out to finish his next album, continued to provoke an audience frenzy as he danced and tossed in lines for a few more Sermon numbers. With his distinguishable delivery, the real dirt in Christina Aguilera's "Dirrty" was a welcome standout from the dozen MCs on the mic before him.

As Sermon's set came to a close and his posse began clearing out, Redman darted back to center stage to rap along to Sugarhill Gang's "Rapper's Delight," which was playing over the house speakers. As the audience got louder, he tossed in more and more ad-libs, eventually provoking Sermon to take a verse.

Another surprise guest, recent Eminem nemesis Benzino, did little for the crowd with his two-song performance, despite his claim that he's been "representing the West Coast on the East Coast" for years.

In between Benzino's and Sermon's sets, hosts Danny Castro and Anthony Marshall, who founded Lyricist Lounge events in 1991, invited a few audience members to freestyle onstage. Like Redman's appearance, both amateurs — a New Jersey man with a Jamaican style and a German woman with a sound all her own — were well received, but the evening was otherwise by the books.

Bleste Nation opened the show and immediately tried to capture the sparse audience by asking, "Does anyone want some free sh--?"

Apparently the crowd was hungry for swag, as people never tired of reaching out for every performer's handout T-shirts and CDs.

Beginning with a track that sampled "Tainted Love" and included a shout-out to Tenacious D, Bleste Nation danced the thin line between being gangsta and being a novelty. One of the rappers, whose striking similarities to Andy Dick worked against him, won over listeners with a crisp and witty style, particularly during an a capella freestyle.

Poverty followed with what proved to be the evening's most inspired set. Over Alchemist beats, he propelled his raps with angst, coming off like a white DMX. "This is real hip-hop, this ain't Crystal bullsh--," he said before "For My People," featuring the tell-all line "They say life is sweet/ But it tastes plain to me."

"F--- the stage," Poverty said mid-set as he walked into the crowd for an entire song. "I'm not better than you." While the audience appeared a bit stunned at first, people warmed up and eventually embraced him as he returned to the stage.

Like Poverty, both of the next two acts, Grafh and Killah Priest, rapped over CD tracks rather than a DJ spinning vinyl, taking away from the spirit of the Lyricist Lounge, which is meant to celebrate the foundations of hip-hop.

Still, they found ways to connect — Grafh by getting down and dirty with his lyrics, Killah by beatboxing over the skilled singers in his posse.

Grafh showed some charm with his wide smile and obnoxious humor ("Romeo and Bow Wow are [sleeping with] the Olsen twins," he revealed in one rap), but took it too far when he singled out a woman in the crowd (with a man on her arm) and tried to romance her by singing, "Will we be f---ing tonight?"

Priest tried hard to promote his upcoming Black August, but got the biggest reaction with material from his solo debut, Heavy Mental.

Sermon's set started slow but picked up when he began paying tribute to several lost icons, including Jam Master Jay, Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes and Roger Troutman, by rapping over some of their memorable tracks. When Sermon mentioned Marvin Gaye, the audience roared, correctly sensing the single "Music" coming up.

Headliner Scarface also came out in chill mood, rapping without a hype man or posse over laid-back beats. His set received a shot of adrenaline thanks to the concrete voice of Willie D and sweet sound of Bushwick Bill, who took the stage for a Geto Boys reunion that included "Mind Playing Tricks on Me."

Once their hit was past them, the show's energy dropped off and ended with an anticlimactic half-version of Scarface's "My Block."

Before the show, founders Castro and Marshall complained that some venues haven't been promoting the tour correctly but said they're more interested in giving rappers the experience than making a profit.

"People knowing how to perform is important," Castro said. "People are not appreciating [that] as much as they did five years ago."

Castro and Marshall are planning short tours next year with artists ranging from Das EFX to the Youngbloods, along with a third Lyricist Lounge CD. The duo also hope to revive "The Lyricist Lounge" TV show that once aired on MTV.

For more sights and stories from concerts around the country, check out MTV News Tour Reports.

• Redman
• Benzino
• Scarface
• Killah Priest

Nas at his video shoot
Photo: Rahman Dukes

For his new single and video, "Made You Look," Nas has once again taken it to the streets.

"We went out to the five boroughs," he said Tuesday night of the video shoot with director Benny Boom, who captured the rapper performing all around New York. "We couldn't get permits, so we went guerilla-style. That's the way it's supposed to be. I see videos and like my man Tracy Morgan said, 'Every video I see, there's a girl, a model, dancing.' What the f--- is that? When you see me, you see the truth." (Click here for photos from the video shoot)

"We took it back to '88," said Boom, who's also directed such videos as Nelly and Kelly Rowland's "Dilemma" (see "Kelly Rowland Moves Into 'Leave It To Beaver' House"). "We wanted to take it back the old Rakim days when you did a video and made it performance and made it hot and showed love to the streets. ... [We] brought Nas to all the neighborhoods and everybody showed love to him. I wanted to give it that whole king of New York aspect of Nas. On the streets he's the king of New York of this rap thing."

"In Queensbridge we showed sections of the bridge," he added. "We had his Bravehearts out there. In the Bronx we had Fat Joe and all his people came and showed love. They came 25 deep in front of the Big Pun mural. We went to Harlem at Rucker Park and we had the ballplayers out there. We went to BK on Fulton and St. James, Fulton and Putnam, to Big's old stomping grounds, and everybody out there gave us crazy love."

Jadakiss, DJ Kay Slay, Killah Priest, Brand Nubian's Lord Jamar also showed their adoration for Nas by making cameos in the video.

"No R&B, straight hip-hop," Nas said on the mic, standing on a small stage in the basement of a Manhattan restaurant, before cameras started rolling. For the video's last scenes to go in the can, a fake club had been set up and Nas and the Bravehearts were the center of attention during a live performance.

"We just wanted to make sure people heard him," Boom said of his choice to shun the usual video process of lip-syncing. "If we wanted the feel of a live show, I was gonna give them a live show. Throw that mic on. Let him rip."

"The record is crazy," Boom later gushed. "I'm a old-school n---a. So for me, that's that 'Straight Outta Compton' [feel]. The sample and that loop is straight from the late '80s, early '90s of when they was introducing hip-hop."

The current state of hip-hop and a certain rhyme foe were at the forefront of Nas' thoughts during a lull in the action. "It's the fourth quarter and everybody has an R&B record, and they say they're hip-hop," he protested. "They just lying, sellin' out hip-hop music with R&B records. You're on your eighth album? Where's your balls at, man? Make a rap record. What, is you scared? Make some rap music. Hip-hop is not about radio, it's not about the TV. These n---as is too [MC] Hammer. This sh-- is real music from real life."

Nas' next dose of reality, God's Son, has been pushed back to December 17. Many of the tracks were recorded from late September to mid-October in Miami while Ja Rule (who co-stars with Nas in the video for "The Pledge" remix) was also down at the studio working on The Last Temptation.

According to Nas' spokesperson, God's Son is still being recorded with "Made You Look" soundscape provider Salaam Remi, Large Professor and the Alchemist contributing most of the beats. No lyrical guests have made it on the LP as of yet.

• Nas
• Kelly Rowland
• Jadakiss
• Brand Nubian
• Killah Priest

Mos Def
Photo: Rawkus

Mos Def, Killah Priest and the X-ecutioners have joined some of the biggest names in underground hip-hop to contribute cuts to the compilation album Underground Airplay Version 1.0, set for release October 16.

Four of the album's 30 tracks are exclusive to the LP, including its first single, Mos Def's version of Newcleus' 1984 hit, "Jam on It," and D-Prosper's remix of "Y'all Know the Name" by the X-ecutioners featuring Pharoahe Monch, Xzibit, Inspectah Deck and Skills, according to the record's publicist. "Jam on It" was shipped to radio last week.

The album was mixed by DJ Spinbad, who serves as Moby's touring DJ.

Underground Airplay Version 1.0 promises to be the first in a three-album series for Mic Media, a new label founded by the producers of the Lyricist Lounge, a multi-faceted hip-hop brand that has launched open-mic nights, compilation albums and an annual package tour, as well as MTV's music/sketch comedy program "The Lyricist Lounge Show." The next installment of Underground Airplay is expected in February.

Underground Airplay Version 1.0 track list, according to the album's publicist:

• Killah Priest - "Heat of the Moment"
• HOM - "Lounge Promo"
• Skeme Team - "Nuthin' You Can Do (W.Y.B.)"
• Self Scientific - "Return"
• Maspyke - "54th Regiment"
• Jane Doe - "Bisexual"
• Casual - "Same O.G."
• Zion I - "Boom Bip"
• Kardinal Offishall - "Ol' Time Killin' "
• Mos Def - "Jam on It"
• Boogieman - "Just U Wait"
• Masta Ace - "Acknowledge"
• Punch & Words - "Let Me Be"
• Hemisphere - "It's Time"
• Phil the Agony (featuring Defari) - "Clear the Lane"
• Lord Have Mercy - "We Will"
• Obie Trice - "Yo!"
• Asheru & Blue Black of Unspoken Heard - "Truly Unique"
• Tahir - "Holiday"
• Invincible (featuring Helixx) - "Perfectionists"
• Bahamadia (featuring Planet Asia and Rasco) - "Special Forces"
• Quasimoto - "Curse on You"
• The X-ecutioners (featuring Pharoahe Monch, Xzibit, Inspectah Deck and Skills) - "Y'all Know the Name"
• Mystic (featuring DJ Revolution) - "Current Events"
• Young Zee (featuring Rah Digga) - "I Love It"
• Rise & Shine - "Blazin' (Stay Building Eternal)"
• The Bad Seed - "Smokey"
• D-stroy - "Roll Out"
• Richie Balance & Rack-Lo - "Good Luck and Bad Luck"
• San Quinn - "Center of Attention"

• Mos Def
• Killah Priest
• The X-Ecutioners
• Newcleus

NEW YORK — Bruce Mayfield, a 30-year-old rapper for the Wu-Tang affiliated American Cream Team, was shot and killed Saturday morning over a money dispute, police said.

Officials believe Mayfield, who rapped under the handle of Chip Banks or just "Bankie," was gunned down by Alfred Dancy around 7:40 a.m. at the corner of 129th Street and Fifth Avenue in Harlem, according to the New York City Department of Corrections Public Information Office.

The rapper was transported to Harlem Hospital, where he was pronounced dead on arrival to the emergency room, a hospital spokesperson said.

Dancy, 28, was arrested near the scene by officers who found a .45-caliber semi-automatic weapon on him, the gun they believe was used in the shooting.

According to the DCPI's preliminary report, Dancy was injured while being taken into custody and was also taken to Harlem Hospital, where he was treated and then released into police custody.

Dancy was arraigned on a felony murder charge and is being held at the Manhattan Detention Complex without bail until a Thursday court date.

Mayfield, who hails from Harlem, helped form American Cream Team in 1997 with B-Twizzy, Lord Superb, Rhyme Recka and Trife. The Wu-Tang Clan's Raekwon took the group's name from a verse in "Motherless Child," a song included on Ghostface Killah's Ironman (1996).

Under the guidance of Raekwon and Wu-Tang Clan producer Oli "Power" Grant, the Cream Team contributed to the RZA-produced "Ghost Dog" soundtrack, Method Man's Tical 2000: Judgement Day (1998) and Raekwon's Immobilarity (1999), among others.

The American Cream Team had been working on their debut album, tentatively titled Only in America, and produced and performed several cuts for last year's "Black and White" soundtrack, with Mayfield taking a solo turn on the song "Stand for Something."

• Ghostface Killah
• Inspectah Deck
• Killah Priest
• Method Man
• Ol' Dirty Bastard

The MCs of Wu-Tang Clan don't have the same harmony as roommates as they do with their rhymes.

That's what they discovered when they holed up in a Los Angeles house together to begin work on their third album, The W.

"Can you imagine, like, 10 of us going to the supermarket and shopping?" GZA said recently. "The bugged-out part about it is instead of all us collaborating like how we do with our rhymes, everyone does their own thing in the supermarket, and by the time we get back to the bus, we have 12 loaves of bread. And there's no room to put sh--."

The W arrives in stores Tuesday and is the Staten Island, New York, group's first release of new material in more than three years. Most of the Clansmen spent the time since 1997's double-disc set Wu-Tang Forever recording and promoting solo and side projects.

The guys said they deliberately steered in the opposite direction of popular hip-hop and reverted back to the basics this time around, using their 1993 debut, Enter the Wu-Tang: 36 Chambers, as their touchstone.

"We had to sit back and listen to the radio," Inspectah Deck said. "It's going out of control now — it's real technotronic. We want to put the gravy back into it, the soul food back into it."

"We just sayin, 'Yo, the era of the real live hip-hop is back,' " he said. "They about to bear witness to a change, and the whole change is gonna come from [breaking] through the illusion. It's not all about the money, the cars, the jewelry, the fame. ... We're taking it back to the essence of hip-hop, just beats and rhymes."

ODB does turn up via previously recorded rhymes on the menacing "Conditioner," also featuring Snoop. Another Dirty track was pulled from the album after the rest of Wu deemed it "too crazy," RZA said.

"He understood that we could not wait for him [to finish his legal obligations]," RZA said. "But at the same time, he got a great representation on the album. And we told him 'Yo, if you stay focused on what you doing and you get outta there ... we'll drop another [album] soon." [RealVideo]

For a full-length interview with the Wu, check out the MTV News feature "Wu-Tang Clan: United They Stand."

• Ghostface Killah
• Inspectah Deck
• Killah Priest
• Method Man
• Ol' Dirty Bastard

Raekwon may be known as the "Chef" of Wu-Tang Clan, but he won't be the only member of the hip-hop group working the pots and pans in an upcoming Wu-Tang documentary.

"A lot of it has to do with us in the kitchen — cookin', throwin' food, havin' debates, speakin' about things," Wu-Tang MC GZA, who is directing the project, said recently. "With real fine editing, it could be nice."

GZA has been compiling footage for a documentary on the Staten Island, New York, group ever since Wu-Tang reunited in the spring to begin work on their third album, The W (November 21). The rappers holed up in a house in Los Angeles for two months during pre-production for the LP.

"I'm trying to finish it up, but as time goes on, there's always more I want in there," GZA said about the film, which has no release date planned yet. "Documentaries sometimes can be shot over 10 years. You plan to stop in two, but you still gotta catch more."

GZA originally planned to make a documentary about himself and began shooting footage while he was on a solo tour in Europe. He found the experience so liberating that he decided to broaden his plans and tackle a Wu documentary.

• Ghostface Killah
• Inspectah Deck
• Killah Priest
• Method Man
• Ol' Dirty Bastard

Sonicnet Music News

Rapper Redman is aiming for a December 12 release date for his fifth solo album, which is slated to feature collaborations with Method Man and D'Angelo, as well as his Def Squad group mates.

"It's not different; it's just gonna be enhanced from the last album I did," Redman said. "Every album I just try to step it up. I don't try to overdo myself, overpower myself. I'm not lookin' to go platinum or triple platinum. I'm just tryin' to do get-on-the-road music so I can go on tour."

The album follows 1998's platinum-certified "Doc's Da Name." Songs Redman has written for the as-yet-untitled LP include "Uh-Huh" and "We Don't Know How To Act."

Erick Sermon, a member of Def Squad along with Redman and Keith Murray, will executive produce the album, while Rockwilder (Jay-Z, Busta Rhymes), DJ Twinz and Canadian hip-hopper Saukrates also will help out on the production. "All of it's family," Redman said. "No outside sh**, just all family."

Redman's Def Jam publicist said D'Angelo and newcomer MC Lady Luck will also appear on the album. Redman and Lady Luck performed a duet called "Come And Get It" on the recently released "Backstage Mixtape" soundtrack.

Murray, who has been incarcerated since 1998 for assaulting a teenage fan in 1995, will appear on Redman's album via prerecorded material. Redman and Sermon have staged rallies for Murray's release and have recruited the support of such artists as Busta Rhymes and Fat Joe.

If he can't meet his goal for a December release date, Redman said he will likely drop the album in February after taking some time off for the holidays. The New Jersey MC plans to mount a tour early next year.

Redman said he and Wu-Tang Clan rapper Method Man plan to put out another collaboration album about this time next year.

"We're both from the same realm; just different cities, different mothers' stomachs," Redman said of the pair's chemistry. "Personally, we're really the same. We like the same kind of sh**, we're not too loud, we're very humble. It's like mind-to-mind; we don't really gotta talk about it. It just happens."

• D'Angelo
• Ghostface Killah
• Inspectah Deck
• Killah Priest
• Method Man

The hard-hitting HBO prison drama "Oz" has inspired a hard-hitting hip-hop album.

Snoop Dogg, Cypress Hill, Method Man, Master P, Trick Daddy, Kurupt & Nate Dogg, Goodie M.O.B., Jadakiss and Styles of the LOX, Devin The Dude, and Three 6 Mafia have all recorded new music for an "Oz" album to be released January 9 on the EMI-distributed Avatar Records label.

"The hardcore, often violent and controversial themes contained in the show create a perfect forum for some of the most aggressive rappers in the industry," said the label's CEO in a press release announcing the project.

A label spokesperson confirmed that Master P and Method Man will both be making cameo appearances on the weekly series when season four resumes in January with eight new episodes. Other musicians who have appeared in cameo or recurring roles on "Oz" include Treach of Naughty By Nature, Evan Seinfeld of Biohazard, L.L. Cool J, David Johansen, and Sandra "Pepa" Denton.

The album is also doing double duty as a fundraiser for the Innocence Project, which helps to free wrongly accused death row inmates through DNA testing.

The organization, which is headed up by celebrity trial attorney Barry Sheck (who defended O.J. Simpson, among others), will receive a substantial donation and a royalty from album sales, according to the label.

"The artists have all come together for this project as a way to give back, as they all personally know someone in prison," the label spokesperson told MTV News.

• Ghostface Killah
• Inspectah Deck
• Killah Priest
• Master P
• Method Man

Sonicnet Music News

While the Wu-Tang Clan insists its new album returns the group to a raw street sound, the first video from "The W" finds the Clan straying far from the streets into a fantasy realm of caveman suits and time travel.

The new Wu album won't arrive until November 21, but on September 16, the nine-member Clan donned furry costumes and rapped along to the party tune "Gravel Pit" on a massive, "Flintstones"-style set made of fake rock, bones, and palm trees to shoot one video for three new songs. Along with "Gravel Pit," the Wu is also cramming the street number "Be Careful" and "Protect Ya Neck (The Jump Off)" into the video, which is expected to clock in at about 10 minutes.

Though Saturday's 100-plus temperatures in Los Angeles forced three of the group's scantily clad dancers off the shoot because of heat exhaustion, all of the Wu-Tang endured, despite the discomfort their costumes added to the sweltering conditions.

"I'm surprised they're not dying on me," director Joseph Kahn (Sisqo, Backstreet Boys) said. "You gotta love it, though. We've got the ghetto Bedrock, and the Wu-Tang are a bunch of pimp 'Flintstone' people, and all of a sudden a kung-fu fight is gonna break out in the middle of it."

All of Wu-Tang's original members participated in the four-day shoot, except troubled co-founder Ol' Dirty Bastard, who is serving time in a court-ordered drug rehab program (see "O.D.B. Progresses In Treatment Program"). Cappadonna is filling his spot, though Wu-Tang's upcoming album, "The W," will include previously recorded rhymes by O.D.B.

You can catch a lot more on the Wu-Tang Clan on Monday afternoon's premiere edition of "Direct Effect," which will carry an MTV News television report filed from the set of the video. The new daily hip-hop show airs at 5:30 p.m. (ET).

Direct yourself to

• Ghostface Killah
• Inspectah Deck
• Killah Priest
• Method Man
• Ol' Dirty Bastard