Latifah: Queen bee of multitalented musicians.

Byline: Tom Moon

NEW YORK _ By now, Queen Latifah is accustomed to the disbelief of people who hear she's recorded a set of jazz and blues standards, complete with lavish strings and guests such as the Rev. Al Green.

The conversations _ and there have been dozens, Latifah laughs _ typically begin with a stunned "You did what, girl?"

After the shock wears off, she politely reminds folks that ever since 1989, when she demonstrated her distinct rhyming style on the grabby "Ladies First," the 34-year-old mogul from Newark, N.J., has confounded an entertainment industry that has consistently underestimated her reach.

"Can I get a Golden Foot Award? I mean, I been having to kick down walls for so many years," the gregarious artist born Dana Owens says with that trademark sparkle in her eye. "To me it's an obligation to try things like this."

But in the next breath, Latifah _ whose first all-out vocal effort, "The Dana Owens Album," arrived Tuesday _ concedes that, though she sang for years before she rapped, she was once reluctant to show the full dimension of her talent.

"Part of me was worried about street cred, which now I think is totally meaningless," she says in a Manhattan hotel, during one of her last chances to talk about music before entering the promotional full-court press for her ...