NME announces partnership with MySpace for first-ever NME Awards US
 

NME - the longest-running and arguably the most famous music weekly in the world - has announced an exclusive partnership with the world's leading social network, MySpace (http://www.myspace.com), to stream the first ever NME Awards US live from Los Angeles later this month. In addition to streaming the awards, MySpace will also be presenting the Best Band of the Year award.

The NME Awards UK - renowned as the most important and prestigious event for British fans of cutting-edge music - will be held in the US for the first time in Los Angeles at Goldenvoice's El Rey Theatre on April 23rd. MySpace will stream the invitation-only, star-studded event, covering not only the Awards themselves but also a string of unique live performances from a host of established and breakthrough artists. "NME has been a leader in discovering and promoting new music for decades - their award show has always been a legendary line-up of who's who in music," says Josh Brooks, MySpace VP of Marketing and Content. "MySpace's partnership with NME is a reflection of our commitment to empowering up and coming artists to living legends with a vehicle to be heard. The MySpace webcast ensures that everyone around the world - not just the lucky few in the audience - will be talking about the show the next day." Fastest Eleven categories have been open for voting at the world's fastest music news service www.nme.com , and it was recently announced that more categories will be added, including American Alternative/Indie Album of the Year (sponsored by www.ew.com, the online extension of Entertainment Weekly); Best New American Alternative/Indie Band, (sponsored by Yahoo! Music, the global internet service provider) and Best Video (sponsored by leading broadband entertainment provider www.heavy.com.) EW.com managing editor Jay Woodruff was upbeat about the US Awards: "We are thrilled to sponsor Best Album of the Year and delighted to help welcome the NME Awards to America." Yahoo! Music managing editor Lyndsey Parker expressed the same level of enthusiasm: "Finally, after years of enviously reading all about the NME Awards festivities occurring way on the other side of the pond, Stateside indie fans are getting in on the fun! Yahoo! is   thrilled to be part of this great moment in Anglo-American relations." Heavy.com VP, entertainment, Jimmy Jellinek, agreed: "Heavy.com is thrilled to be an inaugural partner of the NME US Awards. For the world's leading music magazine to team with the world largest men's video site (15 million uniques a month) is a match made in rock n' roll heaven." Winners will be voted for by NME.com's US audience across key categories, while others, including the famous Godlike Genius Award, will be chosen by NME's editorial team. The NME Awards Tour, which features Kate Nash and is produced by Art Show Touring, a national touring division of Goldenvoice, kicks off in Atlanta on April 15th and travels to a number of US cities before ending in San Francisco on May 13th. It also includes two Canadian dates - Toronto on April 28th and Vancouver on May 8th. NME publishing director Paul Cheal concludes: "The arrival of the awards in the US not only allows us to build on our amazing heritage, but also to bring our biggest live event to a US audience that is using NME.com in ever greater numbers. It's great news to have such powerful supporters to work with." The shortlist for all categories will be unveiled on 7th April online at www.nme.com.