Giving new meaning to the phrase "Master P in da house," MTV's new show Crashing With... has P and son Lil' Romeo spending the night with the Quackenbush family in Louisiana. That's just one among several more reality-driven programs the music channel is rolling out in coming months.

MTVTreatment will have fans compete for a chance to conceive and direct a new video for Korn, while Arist-Launch will document the making of an album from beginning to end. And Made will offer its subjects help in achieving major life goals. Meanwhile, a spokesman for the network says MTV is working on recruiting other artists to do episodes of Crashing With..., which will run as one-off specials for now.

The renewed commitment to reality-based programming should come as no surprise from a network enjoying its highest-rated quarter ever, partly fueled on the strength of The Osbournes, which was just nominated for an Emmy, and such recent hits as Sorority Life and Diary Presents: Brandy -- Special Delivery.

"I keep thinking, 'Where's the saturation point?'" says Brian Graden, president of entertainment for MTV and VH1. "And I can only say we haven't found it yet."

STEVE APPLEFORD
(July 18, 2002)