NEW YORK - Pop ingenue Bree Sharp enjoys the fact that she's making a splash with a tune like "David Duchovny" - the lead single from Cheap & Evil Girl, her Trauma debut due Aug. 3.

  "It's a multilayered song," she says. "On the surface, it seems like a fun song about being infatuated with a TV star, but it's a lot more than that. It's a song about unrequited love and how you deal with having a crush on someone unobtainable. I love the idea of people coming to the song for one thing and leaving with something more."

  The song - with its tag line "David Duchovny/Why won't you love me?" - has caught the attention of its subject. In fact, X Files executive producer Chris Carter got a demo of the tune late last year and requested permission to make an in-house video for the show's Christmas party. They recruited an array of celebrities to lip-sync to the song, including Brad Pitt, George Clooney, Whoopi Goldberg, Rosie O'Donnell, and Kiss, among others.

  The video, while not officially available to the public, has become a hot underground item.

  WTMX Chicago, which started playing the single several weeks prior to Trauma's June 7 shipment date, recently sought out the actor for an on-air comment. During the morning show with air personalities Eric and Kathy, Duchovny said, "It's catchy, and you can dance to it. I give it an 85."

  He added, "I think it's great. It's a little embarrassing. I never expected it to be such a big deal."

  But it is. Retailers are looking forward to getting their hands on Sharp's debut, which they say has credible rock and pop novelty appeal.

  "The single is cute, and I think die-hard X-Files fans will buy the album just for the collectible. But I think the album is deeper than that one song," says Marlon Creaton, manager of Record Kitchen, an outlet in San Francisco. "It'll be interesting to see if the label can use this opportunity to slam-dunk the whole album."

  That's precisely the label's plan. "It's an entertaining song that's getting a lot of attention. Our next step is to establish her as a real artist," says Jim Martone, senior VP of marketing at Trauma.

  For starters, the label has prepared an electronic press kit that's been circulating for several weeks now. "It has a lot of good interview footage and music that shows she's not a novelty act," Martone says, adding that Sharp has also just completed a videoclip with director Marcus Nispel.

  Sharp will also hit the road for a series of showcases, alternating between band dates and acoustic gigs. When she's not playing clubs, Sharp will be performing for retailers and radio programmers.

  "I'm looking forward to being out there playing these songs," she says.

  Creatively, Sharp says, Cheap & Evil Girl came together quickly. While she wrote "David Duchovny" a year and a half ago, once the deal with Trauma was done earlier this year, the demand to finish an album was great.

  "The energy in the studio was incredible," she says. "Things were hectic, but they came together well. It was magical. I'm so proud of the songs on this album."

  Among the set's stronger tunes is Fallen, a dark lullaby that Sharp says she wrote to "my unborn child. It's about not having faith in humanity. It's like, 'What am I going to tell my kid about the heinous things that happen in the world?' It's a deep song that's designed to make you think and feel."

  Actually, that's Sharp's mission as an artist, in general. "I hope people leave this record feeling like they've been on an emotional journey."

  The artist is managed by Bret Disend for Ozone Entertainment. Her songs are published by Famous Music (ASCAP).