Pandora, Pepsi and The Recording Academy® Provide Music Fans with Inside Look at Best New Artist GRAMMY® Nominees, via Video Series and Genre Stations

OAKLAND, Calif. and SANTA MONICA, Calif., Feb. 2, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Leading personalized radio service Pandora (NYSE: P), PepsiCo Inc. and The Recording Academy^® (www.grammy.com) today announced an original content video series showcasing the 54th GRAMMY^® Best New Artist nominees. Newly created Pandora GRAMMY genre stations have been created in conjunction with the series, designed to help music fans celebrate and capture the excitement around the 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards^®. The video series can be found at www.pandora.com/pepsigrammyvideo and the GRAMMY genre stations are accessible at http://pandora.com/genres/grammys.

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The Best New Artist video series includes exclusive interviews with the Band Perry, Bon Iver, J. Cole, Nicki Minaj, and Skrillex. During the interviews, the artists discuss the evolution of their careers, share their excitement surrounding their Best New Artist nomination and describe their anticipation for Music's Biggest Night^®.

The GRAMMY genre stations are based on official GRAMMY categories, ranging from country to comedy, and spotlight current and past GRAMMY-nominated artists. The new GRAMMY genre stations include:

• GRAMMY^® Country: featuring artists such as Lady Antebellum, Toby Keith, Blake Shelton, and Carrie Underwood.
• GRAMMY^® Pop and Dance: featuring artists such as Adele, Black Eyed Peas, Coldplay, and Maroon 5.
• GRAMMY^® Rock and Alternative: featuring artists such as the Black Keys, Paul McCartney, Mumford & Sons, and Red Hot Chili Peppers.
• GRAMMY^® Rap: featuring artists such as Drake, Nicki Minaj, Kanye West, and 50 Cent.
• GRAMMY^® R&B: featuring artists such as Beyonce, Chris Brown, Jennifer Hudson, and John Legend.
• GRAMMY^® Gospel and Contemporary Christian Music: featuring artists such as Kirk Franklin, Brandon Heath, Mary Mary, and Matthew West.
• GRAMMY^® Latin: featuring artists such as Calle 13, Intocable, Los Tigres Del Norte, and Wisin Y Yandel.
• GRAMMY^® Jazz: featuring artists such as Karrin Allyson, Herbie Hancock, Sonny Rollins, and Yellowjackets.
• GRAMMY^® World and Reggae: featuring artists such as Gilberto Gil, Femi Kuti, Ziggy Marley, and Shaggy.
• GRAMMY^® American Roots Music: featuring artists such as the Civil Wars, Emmylou Harris, Keb' Mo', and Ricky Skaggs.
• GRAMMY^® Classical: featuring artists such as those from the London Philharmonic Orchestra and Metropolitan Opera, Paul Ruders, and Yo-Yo Ma.
• GRAMMY^® Comedy: featuring artists such as Lewis Black, Louis C.K., Flight Of The Conchords, and "Weird Al" Yankovic.

"We're excited to celebrate this year's GRAMMY Awards by giving Pandora listeners access to their favorite GRAMMY-nominated artists and helping them discover great new music through our GRAMMY genre stations," said Pandora Chief Marketing Officer Simon Fleming-Wood.

"The excitement surrounding the red-hot Best New Artist nominees is not only soaring, but also celebrates new artists that are both refreshing and innovative in spirit," said Tom Moradpour, senior director, Pepsi. "Pepsi is thrilled to help create unforgettable music experiences for fans at this year's GRAMMY awards and will continue to harness the power of music and entertainment."

"To commemorate the excitement for Music's Biggest Night with the launch of a dozen GRAMMY genre stations and the first-ever Best New Artist video series is exciting," said Evan Greene, Chief Marketing Officer, The Recording Academy. "We were pleased to extend this innovative program to Pandora users through our partnership with Pepsi."

The partnership also offers music fans a GRAMMY mixtape, which can be found at www.pandora.com/pepsigrammymusic and includes songs from nominees and newcomers in various 54th GRAMMY Awards categories.

The 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards will be held Sunday, Feb. 12 at Staples Center in Los Angeles and will be broadcast live on the CBS Television Network at 8 p.m. (ET/PT).

About Pandora

Pandora (NYSE: P) gives people music they love anytime, anywhere, through connected devices. (OK, we've added comedy as well so we're also up for playing some jokes you'll love.) Personalized stations launch instantly with the input of a single "seed" — a favorite artist, song or genre. The Music Genome Project^®, a deeply detailed hand-built musical taxonomy, powers the personalization of Pandora^® internet radio by using musicological "DNA" and constant listener feedback to craft personalized stations from a growing collection of hundreds of thousands of recordings. Tens of millions of people in the U.S. turn on Pandora to hear music they love.  www.pandora.com

About The Recording Academy

Established in 1957, The Recording Academy is an organization of musicians, producers, engineers and recording professionals that is dedicated to improving the cultural condition and quality of life for music and its makers. Internationally known for the GRAMMY Awards — the preeminent peer-recognized award for musical excellence and the most credible brand in music — The Recording Academy is responsible for groundbreaking professional development, cultural enrichment, advocacy, education and human services programs. The Academy continues to focus on its mission of recognizing musical excellence, advocating for the well-being of music makers and ensuring music remains an indelible part of our culture. For more information about The Academy, please visit www.grammy.com. For breaking news and exclusive content, follow @TheGRAMMYs on Twitter, like "The GRAMMYs" on Facebook, and join The GRAMMYs' social communities on YouTube, Tumblr, Foursquare, GetGlue and Instagram.

About PepsiCo

PepsiCo offers the world's largest portfolio of billion-dollar food and beverage brands, including 22 different product lines that generate more than $1 billion in annual retail sales each. Our main businesses -- Quaker, Tropicana, Gatorade, Frito-Lay, and Pepsi Cola -- also make hundreds of other enjoyable foods and beverages that are respected household names throughout the world. With net revenues of approximately $60 billion, PepsiCo's people are united by our unique commitment to sustainable growth by investing in a healthier future for people and our planet, which we believe also means a more successful future for PepsiCo. We call this commitment Performance with Purpose: PepsiCo's promise to provide a wide range of foods and beverages for local tastes; to find innovative ways to minimize our impact on the environment, including by conserving energy and water usage, and reducing packaging volume; to provide a great workplace for our associates; and to respect, support, and invest in the local communities where we operate. For more information, please visit www.pepsico.com.

SOURCE The Recording Academy