Unsigned Artists Vie to Perform at 49th Annual Grammy Awards Show

Press release
Source: Rogers & Cowan

The Recording Academy® announced "My GRAMMY® Moment" today as it continues its mission of discovering and nurturing music makers with an historic opportunity for unsigned artists to vie for a performance with Justin Timberlake on the 49th Annual GRAMMY Awards. Current multi-GRAMMY nominee Timberlake will culminate his recent involvement with the GRAMMY Foundation®'s music education initiatives by performing live on the GRAMMY Awards in a special segment with the unsigned artist that fans choose online at Yahoo! Music, the official online partner of the GRAMMY Awards. The Top 3 finalists will be eligible to participate in GRAMMY Foundation activities including GRAMMY Career DaySM and GRAMMY CampSM, as well as The Recording Academy's recently launched GRAMMY University Network. The 49th Annual GRAMMY Awards will be held on Feb. 11, 2007, at STAPLES Center in Los Angeles and will be broadcast live on the CBS Television Network at 8 p.m. (ET/PT). Performers and presenters for the telecast will be announced in the following weeks.

"From successful programs such as GRAMMY Career Day and GRAMMY SoundChecksSM to newly introduced programs such as GRAMMY Camp and GRAMMY University Network, our Academy and its GRAMMY Foundation have made music education and career enhancement priorities 365 days a year," said Neil Portnow, President of The Recording Academy. "This 'My GRAMMY' segment gives us the perfect opportunity to demonstrate via the Telecast another fine example of what we do so well on a daily basis. At the same time it's our goal to bring music fans even closer to the GRAMMYs without affecting the criteria of peer group voting that sets the GRAMMY Awards apart from other music award shows."

"The Internet has revolutionized the way that unknown artists can reveal their talent to a larger audience, and television remains the most powerful platform to showcase such talent to the masses," said Jack Sussman, Executive Vice President, Specials, Music and Live Events, CBS. "By harnessing the accessibility, interactivity and reach of these two mediums, we have created an unprecedented opportunity for an up-and-coming musician, as well as a memorable and exciting moment for television audiences. The GRAMMY Awards have always been ahead of the game when it comes to discovering and spotlighting new talent and music, and this event takes that commitment to even greater heights."

"I'm happy to participate in this unique approach to discovering unsigned talent, but I'm only a piece of the puzzle," said Justin Timberlake. "All of you contestants out there should look at this as more than just a chance to duet with me, because it's really an opportunity to begin your career as a superstar.  And I'll be there to help coach you along." 

"The GRAMMY Awards telecast is known for introducing a remarkable number of talented artists to the broad audience that follows our show from year to year. Many of these artists, from Ricky Martin and Robert Randolph to Norah Jones and John Legend, have gone on to extremely successful careers due in no small part to their GRAMMY appearances," said co-executive producer (with John Cossette) Ken Ehrlich. "With this concept, we will be able to continue that tradition and reach out even further to the incredibly diverse musical community that watches the GRAMMYs."

"Yahoo! Music has always focused on supporting and cultivating new musical talent through original programming," said Dave Goldberg, Vice President and General Manager of Yahoo! Music. "'My GRAMMY Moment' is the progression of our commitment to providing users with the premiere online music venue for new and established artists."

Submission Information

· December 15 (after 10 a.m. ET/7 a.m. PT):  Singers — 18 years and older, U.S. residents, and not signed (nor ever been signed) to an independent or major record label — submit a 60-second video of him/her singing one of the following GRAMMY-winning songs only (must be a cappella with no music or background track whatsoever):

"If I Ain't Got You" (originally performed by Alicia Keys), "Breathe" (originally performed by Faith Hill), "Come To My Window" (originally performed by Melissa Etheridge), "What's Love Got To Do With It" (originally performed by Tina Turner), "Dance With My Father" (originally performed by Luther Vandross), "Cry Me A River" (originally performed by Justin Timberlake), "Respect" (originally performed by Aretha Franklin), "I Wanna Dance With Somebody" (originally performed by Whitney Houston), or "Vision Of Love" (originally performed by Mariah Carey).

· Videos should be submitted and uploaded to Yahoo! Music, no later than Jan. 3, 2007, 11:59 p.m. ET.

· Original group of videos will be judged by a VIP Blue Ribbon Committee made up of singers, songwriters, producers, music industry execs, as well as key executives from The Recording Academy.

· Starting at 10 a.m. ET, December 15, Rules and Regulations can be found at http://music.yahoo.com/mygrammymoment/rules.asp.

Voting and Performance Information

· Fans and viewers can begin viewing video submissions online at CBS.com, powered by Yahoo! Music, Dec. 18.

· Blue Ribbon Committee evaluates all video submissions.

· Top 12 Artists announced Jan. 8. Viewers and fans will have the opportunity to vote for their favorites at Yahoo! Music.

· Top 5 Artists announced Jan. 16. Voting will continue.

· Top 3 Artists announced Super Bowl weekend.

· Top 3 Artists will each rehearse with Justin Timberlake during rehearsals the week leading up to the 49th Annual GRAMMY Awards.

· Viewers and fans can vote for the final performer during the broadcast on Feb. 11, 2007 at CBS.com or via text messaging until 10 p.m. ET. The final performer will be announced as the world watches and will join the stage for the ultimate GRAMMY Moment with Justin Timberlake.

· Users may log on directly to CBS.com or to Yahoo! Music to access the video submissions, video viewing and voting site: http://music.yahoo.com/mygrammymoment/.

About The Recording Academy
Established in 1957, the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences, Inc., also known as The Recording Academy, is an organization of musicians, producers, engineers and recording professionals that is dedicated to improving the cultural condition and quality of life for music and its makers. Internationally known for the GRAMMY Awards, The Recording Academy is responsible for groundbreaking professional development, cultural enrichment, advocacy, education and human services programs — including the creation of the national public education campaign What's The Download® (WhatsTheDownload.com). For more information about The Academy, please visit www.grammy.com.

About Yahoo! Music
Yahoo! Music (http://music.yahoo.com) is the #1 online music destination. Yahoo! Music offers more than 2 million songs for download as well as the tools to manage, explore and share music. Yahoo! Music provides a wide selection of streaming video and audio, the Web's largest collection of music videos, Internet radio, original content, exclusive features, artist information and news covering all genres of music to Yahoo! users.

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