New Line Records' Hairspray Soundtrack Earns Grammy Nomination for Best Soundtrack Recording

New Line Records' Hairspray Soundtrack Earns Grammy Nomination for Best Soundtrack Recording

RIAA Certifies Album With Platinum Status

LOS ANGELES, Dec. 6 /PRNewswire/ -- New Line Records' soundtrack to the hit musical comedy Hairspray received a Grammy nomination on Thursday for Best Soundtrack Recording. The album was also just certified Platinum by the RIAA, selling in excess of 1 million copies in the US.

The Hairspray soundtrack spent 9 consecutive weeks in the top 10 of the Billboard Top 200 chart this summer after its July 10, 2007 release.

"The enormous success of the Hairspray soundtrack is due to the brilliant team of its producers and songwriters Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman," says Jason Linn, New Line Executive Vice President of Music who oversees New Line Records. "Its Platinum status and Grammy nomination mark two 'firsts' for New Line Records -- so this week has been a huge milestone for us."

The album includes three original numbers that were created specifically for the film version of the hit Broadway musical -- "Ladies' Choice," "New Girl In Town," and "Come So Far." Also featured on the soundtrack are the songs "Good Morning Baltimore," "Welcome to the '60s," "Nicest Kids In Town," and "You Can't Stop The Beat." The songs are performed by cast members John Travolta, Queen Latifah, Michelle Pfeiffer, Zac Efron, Amanda Bynes, Brittany Snow and Elijah Kelley among others. Also featured is the track, "Mama, I'm a Big Girl Now" performed by Rikki Lake, Marissa Jaret Winokur and Nikki Blonsky.

The Hairspray soundtrack is produced by Marc Shaiman and features music by Shaiman and lyrics by Scott Wittman and Shaiman. It features tracks mixed by Ed Cherney (Rolling Stones, Bette Midler), Peter Mokran (Pussycat Dolls, Christina Aguilera) as well as Frank Wolf.

The 2008 50th Annual Grammy Awards will be presented on Feb. 10 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. New Line Records earned an additional Grammy nomination for Howard Shore's soundtrack for The Departed in the category of Best Score Sountrack Album for a Motion Picture; and New Line Records artist Allison Moorer was nominated for Best Country Collaboration With Vocals for the song "Days Aren't Long Enough" with Steve Earle.

Sixteen years after the release of the original film, New Line Cinema brings a feature film adaptation of the Tony Award-winning Broadway production of Hairspray to life. Featuring new and original material based on John Waters' 1988 cult classic about star-struck teenagers on a local Baltimore dance show, the comedy features a remarkable collection of talent including John Travolta, Queen Latifah, Michelle Pfeiffer, Christopher Walken, Amanda Bynes, Allison Janney, Brittany Snow, Zac Efron, Elijah Kelley, director and choreographer Adam Shankman (Bringing Down The House), and producers Craig Zadan and Neil Meron (Chicago). The new screenplay for Hairspray was written by Leslie Dixon (Freaky Friday, Outrageous Fortune).

On Nov. 20, New Line Records released a limited run, 2 disc deluxe collector's edition of the Hairspray soundtrack. Hairspray debuted in theatres nationwide on July 20 and is now available on DVD, HD-DVD and Blu-Ray from New Line Home Entertainment.

About New Line Records:

New Line Records, a division of New Line Productions, has been releasing recorded music since 2002. Distributed through Warner Music Group's independent arm ADA, NLR has released over 50 titles including the soundtracks to Elf, Wedding Crashers, The Notebook, A Prairie Home Companion, The Departed, and Hairspray. It is also the artist home to The Sounds, Albert Hammond Jr., OFFICE, Allison Moorer and Elijah Kelley, among others.

About New Line Cinema Corporation:

Celebrating its 40th anniversary year, New Line Cinema is the most successful independent film company in the world. Its mission is to produce innovative, popular and profitable entertainment in the best creative environment. In addition to the production, marketing and distribution of theatrical motion pictures, the fully-integrated studio has divisions devoted to home entertainment, television, music, theater, merchandising and an international unit. In 2005, New Line partnered with HBO to form Picturehouse, a new theatrical distribution company to release independent films. A pioneer in franchise filmmaking, New Line's Oscar-winning The Lord of the Rings trilogy is one of the most successful film franchises in history. New Line is a division of Time Warner, Inc. (TWX).

Contact:

Candice McDonough
New Line Cinema
(310) 967-6991
Candice.mcdonough@newline.com

Kerri Chyka
New Line Cinema
(212) 649-6189
kerri.chyka@newline.com

First Call Analyst:
FCMN Contact:

Source: New Line Records

CONTACT: Candice McDonough, +1-310-967-6991,
Candice.mcdonough@newline.com, or Kerri Chyka, +1-212-649-6189,
kerri.chyka@newline.com, both of New Line Cinema

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