Tommy Lee and Handleman Company Announce Exclusive Distribution Agreement for Solo Album, 'Tommyland'

Tommy Lee and Handleman Company Announce Exclusive Distribution Agreement for Solo Album, 'Tommyland'

Album Marks Launch of New Low-Cost Distribution Model

TROY, Mich., March 16 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Handleman Company (NYSE:HDL), today announced it has entered into an agreement with multi- platinum rocker Tommy Lee to be the exclusive distributor of Lee's new solo album, "Tommyland: The Ride," scheduled to be released in August 2005. Lee is represented by Carl Stubner, CEO of Sanctuary Artist Management. Launching a new distribution model, the deal marks the first time that Lee will release an album without using the traditional major label infrastructure, and the first time that Handleman will act as the sole distributor for a major recording artist.

This direct relationship between Lee and Handleman will streamline the supply chain and allow the album to be offered at an attractive cost to consumers, while enabling retailers to achieve a fair profit margin. "From the very beginning, I wanted to do something different with this record, something groundbreaking," said Lee. "I wanted to get great new music to my fans without charging them fifteen or sixteen bucks for a CD. And Handleman is helping me do that, so I couldn't be happier."

"Tommyland: The Ride," Lee's third solo recording, will be released in conjunction with his new NBC reality show, "Tommy Lee Goes to College." Produced by Scott Humphrey, who along with Carl Stubner played an instrumental role with Handleman in constructing the new distribution concept, "Tommyland: The Ride" features guest performances by such established artists as Chad Kroeger of Nickelback, Carl Bell of Fuel, Deryck Whibley of Sum 41, Butch Walker, Joel Madden of Good Charlotte, and Nick Carter of the Backstreet Boys.

"We are excited about this new business partnership with Tommy Lee, who's a proven seller," said Stephen Strome, Handleman Company Chairman and CEO. "This initiative is an example of how Handleman Company can add value to the music supply chain. Given our high-quality people, systems and experience, we are confident this relationship will be beneficial for everyone involved, including consumers, retailers, Tommy Lee, and Handleman Company."

Ron Lund, Handleman Company Senior Vice President of Product Management and Logistics, commented, "Tommy Lee is a dynamic artist who remains very relevant in the industry, and who has built a solid brand name. We're very excited to work with Tommy on this project and deliver his music to the marketplace in a new and beneficial way."

To complement its sales capabilities, Handleman Company has also partnered with a third party sales consultant firm, Rocket Science LLC, to handle sales solicitation, retail marketing and retail account interaction activities for "Tommyland: The Ride."

About Tommy Lee

Tommy Lee is a member of Motley Crue, one of the most popular and successful hard rock bands of all time, with career album sales totaling more than 40 million units. Its recently released career two-disc anthology, "Red, White & Crue," debuted at number six on the Billboard chart and sold nearly 100,000 units during its first week. Motley Crue recently reunited with all four original members and is currently on a world tour expected to be one of the top grossing tours of 2005.

About Handleman Company

Handleman Company is a category manager and distributor of prerecorded music to leading retailers in the United States, United Kingdom, and Canada. As a category manager, the Company manages a broad assortment of titles to optimize sales and inventory productivity in retail stores, and provides such services as direct-to-store shipments, marketing and in-store merchandising.

Source: Handleman Company

CONTACT: Greg Mize of Handleman Company, +1-248-362-4400, Ext. 211,
Greg.mize@handleman.com ; David Bassett of Marx Layne Public Relations,
+1-248-855-6777, Ext. 132, dbassett@marxlayne.com , for Handleman Company;
Dvora Vener Englefield of BWR Public Relations, +1-310-248-6161,
dvener@bwr-la.com , for Tommy Lee

Web site: http://www.handleman.com/

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