Front Line Management and Syco Entertainment Partner on The X Factor

LOS ANGELES, Aug. 4, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Front Line Management and Syco Entertainment today announced a partnership which will see the future winning artist or group of the U.S. version of The X Factor managed by Front Line Management, the world's leading artist management group.

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Front Line, a division of Live Nation Entertainment, manages the careers of some of the world's biggest-selling artists, including The Eagles, Miley Cyrus, Journey, New Kids on The Block, Christina Aguilera and Fleetwood Mac.

The X Factor is a new competition series that gives viewers the opportunity to help choose the next global superstar or breakout music group. Judges Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul, L.A. Reid and Nicole Scherzinger travel the nation searching for undiscovered talent 12 years old or over – both solo artists and vocal groups – who are worthy of the largest prize in television history: a $5 million recording contract with Syco/Sony Music Entertainment. The X Factor launches on Fox on September 21st.

Front Line managers will be working closely with the show's producers and judges throughout the competition and its live stages and Front Line will manage both the show's winning solo artist or group and its finalists.

"I'm proud to be involved with Simon Cowell and X Factor," said Irving Azoff, Chairman and CEO of the Front Line Management Group.  "The Front Line team is excited to mentor this next generation of superstars."

"I'm really happy to be working with Irving and his team," said Simon Cowell. "It is really important that the contestants have world class representation, and Irving brings that."

The X Factor is produced by Syco Television and FremantleMedia North America.

About Front Line Management

Founded in 2004 and owned by Live Nation Entertainment, Front Line Management Group is the world's leading artist management company, with over 250 clients and more than 90 executive managers.  Front Line and its affiliates represent a wide range of major artists and entertainment brands, including the Eagles, Jimmy Buffett, Neil Diamond, Christina Aguilera, Kenny Chesney, Fleetwood Mac, Journey, Glee Live!, Jennifer Hudson and The New Kids on The Block.  Live Nation Entertainment is the world's leading live entertainment company, connecting 200 million fans to 100,000 events in over 40 countries, which has made Ticketmaster.com one of the world's top 5 eCommerce sites.  For additional information, visit www.livenation.com/investors.

About "The X Factor"

Since its debut in 2004, "The X Factor" has remained the U.K.'s #1 program for the last seven years, peaking with an audience of 21 million with 65% audience share for its 2010 finale. The format swiftly broke similar records around the world, where local versions have consistently rated #1 in 15 territories, with a worldwide audience now well over 100 million. In Denmark, it has ranked #1 for the last four years, peaking with an 80% share of the audience. In Colombia, it has consistently ranked #1 with a 75% share of the audience. Additionally, "The X Factor" consistently delivers a 50% to 65% share of the viewing audiences in Greece, Hungary, Netherlands, France and Italy – with the highest percentage of these shares in A15-34. In some markets, "The X Factor" has increased the channel average demographic by up to 250%. The series has received numerous honors worldwide, including three BAFTA awards, numerous NTA awards and the coveted Rose d'Or. In the U.K., an unprecedented 1.5 million iTunes downloads were made from "The X Factor" contestant performances in 2010. Globally, more than 100 million records have been sold by artists launched through the series, including over 90 #1 singles and albums and 150 Top Ten records.

About Sony Music Entertainment

Sony Music Entertainment is a global recorded music company with a current roster that includes a broad array of both local artists and international superstars. The company boasts a vast catalog that comprises some of the most important recordings in history. It is home to premier record labels representing music from every genre, including American Recordings, Arista Nashville, Arista Records, Battery Records, Beach Street Records, BNA Records, Columbia Nashville, Columbia Records, Day 1, Epic Records, Essential Records, Flicker Records, J Records, Jive Records, LaFace Records, Legacy Recordings, MASTERWORKS, Polo Grounds, RCA Records, RCA Nashville, RCA Red Seal, RCA Victor, Reunion Records, Roc Nation, Sony Classical, Sony Music Latin, Star Time International, Verity Gospel Music Group, and Volcano Entertainment. Sony Music Entertainment is a wholly owned subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America. 

About Syco/Simon Cowell

Syco, with offices in London and Los Angeles, is a global music, television and film production joint venture between Simon Cowell and Sony Music Entertainment. Syco Television owns and produces the BAFTA Award-winning "The X Factor," which has topped the charts around the world. Syco Television is also the owner of the "Got Talent" television format. Versions of both "The X Factor" and "Got Talent" are co-produced by Syco, and are shown in more than 70 countries and have won multiple awards including national television awards and BAFTAs. THE X FACTOR launches in America on FOX in Fall 2011 with Cowell as a judge.

Syco is also the record label home for such diverse international recording stars as Leona Lewis and Il Divo. Cowell has worked with artists selling more than 200 million albums and delivering more than 180 No. 1 records. Britain's Got Talent in 2009 launched the global singing career of Susan Boyle. Her debut Syco album sold over 8 million units in six weeks, making it the world's biggest-selling album of 2009 and the fastest-selling album in history and a total of 20 million records to date.

In 2009, Cowell was named No. 1 in Hollywood Reporter's Top 50 Most Powerful in Reality TV and Entertainment Weekly's Top Entertainer of the Year. In 2010 Simon Cowell was awarded Variety International's Humanitarian Award for his extensive charitable work, The Rose d'Or Golden Jubilee Award and BAFTA's Special Award in recognition of his outstanding contribution to the entertainment industry and development of new talent. He also appeared on Time Magazine's list of Most Influential People in the World and was awarded the International Emmy Founders Award.

SOURCE Live Nation Entertainment