MSN to Sponsor and Webcast the Music Industry's Exclusive Grammy Event

MSN to Sponsor and Webcast the Music Industry's Exclusive Grammy Event

Clive Davis' Legendary Pre-Grammy Party Set for February 9TH

NEW YORK, Jan. 30 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, RCA Music Group and Microsoft Corp announced that MSN has signed on as the exclusive online broadcaster and as a title sponsor of Clive Davis' legendary Pre-Grammy Party, which will be held February 9th in Beverly Hills, California.

MSN will be the exclusive online broadcaster of the evening's historic musical performances. On Sunday, February 10, music fans can log on to music.msn.com for access to performances and interviews straight from the red carpet. On Monday, February 11, fans will also be able to access on demand performances from the star-studded event.

This annual event, which occurs on the eve of the Grammy Awards, long-ago established itself as the destination for A-list celebrities, Grammy winners, Hollywood stars, sports legends, authors and influential entertainment industry executives. The evening consists of cocktails, a sit-down dinner and performances from some of the biggest names in music.

"MSN's exclusive webcast of Clive Davis' legendary Pre-Grammy Party highlights our commitment to providing fans with a variety of extraordinary music and entertainment experiences," said Rob Bennett, general manager of entertainment, video and sports, MSN. "We are proud to be a part of this renowned evening, which brings together the recording industry's finest talent and biggest celebrity names for a night of unforgettable music."

Tom Corson, Executive Vice President and General Manager, RCA Music Group said, "We are delighted to welcome MSN as a first time sponsor of what is always one of the entertainment industry's biggest nights. We are thrilled to have MSN present this exclusive star-studded show to a worldwide audience."

In recent years, performers at Clive Davis' legendary Pre-Grammy Party have included Whitney Houston, Alicia Keys, Jennifer Hudson, Akon, Mary J. Blige, Pink, Foo Fighters, Fergie and the Black Eyed Peas, Annie Lennox, Barry Manilow, Smokey Robinson, Stevie Wonder, Luther Vandross, Jamie Foxx, Kanye West, Usher, Carrie Underwood, Nelly, Carlos Santana, Ludacris, Wyclef Jean, P. Diddy, Chris Brown, Patti LaBelle, Tony Bennett, Rod Stewart, and Justin Timberlake, among others.

Attendees have included Prince, Jennifer Lopez, Sidney Poitier, Chris Rock, Vice-President Al Gore, Sharon Stone, Meg Ryan, Terrence Howard, Ashlee and Jessica Simpson, Courtney Love, Steven Tyler, Diana Ross, Ellen DeGeneres and Portia De Rossi, Reese Witherspoon, Larry King, Sheryl Crow, Kevin Bacon and Kyra Sedgwick, Antonio Banderas, Jackie Collins, Mariah Carey, Jerry Seinfeld, Magic Johnson, Lance Armstrong, Britney Spears, Nick Lachey, Martha Stewart, Quincy Jones, Howard Stern, Penny Marshall, Evander Holyfield, and many more.

The performance lineup for the event is kept secret until the night of the show. This year the event is being held at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, California.

About MSN and Windows Live

MSN attracts more than 465 million unique users worldwide per month. With localized versions available globally in 42 markets and 21 languages, MSN is a world leader in delivering compelling programmed content experiences to consumers and online advertising opportunities to businesses worldwide. In addition to streaming news, entertainment and sports video clips from more than 50 content partners including "The Today Show," FOX Sports, MSNBC, Reveille, Control Room, CBS, News Corp. and Fox Entertainment Group, MSN presents a broad array of live events to online audiences worldwide. Most recently, MSN partnered with Control Room to stream Live Earth, the largest online entertainment event in history with over 62 million streams worldwide.

Windows Live, a set of personal Internet services and software, is designed to bring together in one place all the relationships, information and interests people care about most, with enhanced safety and security features across their PC, devices and the Web. MSN and Windows Live are offered alongside each other as complementary services. Some Windows Live services entered an early beta phase on Nov. 1, 2005; these and future beta updates can be found at http://ideas.live.com/. Windows Live is available at http://www.live.com/. MSN is located on the Web at http://www.msn.com/. MSN worldwide sites are located at http://www.msn.com/worldwide.ashx

About Microsoft

Founded in 1975, Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) is the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential.

About RCA Music Group

The RCA Music Group includes J Records, Arista Records and RCA Records. The J Records roster is home to platinum superstars Alicia Keys, Rod Stewart, Pearl Jam, Luther Vandross, Jamie Foxx, Mario, Jennifer Hudson, Leona Lewis, Gavin DeGraw, Emily King, Fantasia, and Monica, among others. The Arista Records family includes all-time superstars Sarah McLachlan, Santana, Dido, Aretha Franklin, Whitney Houston, Carrie Underwood, and Barry Manilow. RCA Records is home to superstar artists Christina Aguilera, Dave Matthews Band, Foo Fighters, The Strokes, Velvet Revolver, Avril Lavigne, Clay Aiken, Kelly Clarkson, Daughtry, and more. RCA Music Group is part of Sony BMG Music Entertainment.

First Call Analyst:
FCMN Contact:

Source: RCA Music Group

CONTACT: Mika El-Baz of RCA Music Group, +1-646-840-5670,
mika.elbaz@sonybmg.com; or Brynn Vitale of Waggener Edstrom Worldwide for MSN,
+1-917-576-4832, bvitale@waggeneredstrom.com; or Rapid Response Team, Waggener
Edstrom Worldwide for Microsoft, +1-503-443-7070, rrt@waggeneredstrom.com

Web site:

http://music.msn.com/
http://ideas.live.com/
http://www.live.com/
http://www.msn.com/
http://www.msn.com/worldwide.ashx

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