The Recording Academy® Announces Official Sponsors for 54th Annual Grammy Awards®

SANTA MONICA, Calif., Feb. 10, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- The Recording Academy® (www.grammy.com) proudly announced its official sponsors for this year's 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards®. Delta Air Lines, Harman, Hilton Hotels & Resorts, Hyundai, MasterCard, PEOPLE, Pepsi, Procter & Gamble (COVERGIRL, Olay and Venus), Waste Management and Dial Global Radio are all supporters of this year's GRAMMY Awards and GRAMMY® Week events.

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"With our most dynamic and exciting line up of marketing partners to date, the GRAMMYs continue to reach new heights," said Evan Greene, Chief Marketing Officer of The Recording Academy. "With so many engaged partners committed to driving innovation, we are expanding our GRAMMY message farther and wider than ever before, and together we continue to redefine marketing possibilities."

Delta Air Lines returns for the fifth year as the "official airline sponsor" of The Recording Academy and GRAMMY Awards. Starting in January, Delta flights spotlighted in-flight GRAMMY programming consisting of a dedicated GRAMMY radio channel featuring past Record Of The Year-winning recordings. In March, Delta will also begin featuring the 2012 GRAMMY Nominees album on its flights. This year Delta provided an opportunity for fans of the Delta Facebook page to be a part of the excitement while attending this year's GRAMMY Awards. Throughout the year Delta will continue to include GRAMMY-inspired programming on entertainment-equipped flights, furthering the brand's support and association with music and its makers.

Harman returns for a fourth year as the "official sound partner" of the 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards and title sponsor of the exclusive Pre-GRAMMY Gala, produced by Clive Davis and The Recording Academy. Harman Chairman Dinesh Paliwal will host VIPs at the Pre-GRAMMY Gala and Harman will highlight its newest products at GRAMMY Week events — allowing the music industry to interact with their state-of-the-art home, automotive and professional audio products. Harman's brands AKG Acoustics GmbH and JBL Professional were recognized by The Recording Academy with Technical GRAMMY Awards in 2010 and 2005, respectively, for excellence in technology innovation.

A partner for more than 20 years, Hilton Hotels & Resorts once again gave its team members and guests from across the globe the opportunity to attend this year's GRAMMY Awards. Team members submitted videos showing why they are a rock star for a chance to attend Music's Biggest Night HHonors members were given the opportunity to bid their HHonors points for a once-in-a-lifetime travel package to attend various GRAMMY Week events Hilton then donated the cash equivalent of the total points bid to the GRAMMY Foundation®.  Hilton asked guests to tell them about their music inspired trip through the Go To The GRAMMYs contest on Facebook where one lucky guest will win a trip to the GRAMMYs in 2013.  For the second year, the flagship brand of Hilton Worldwide is a proud sponsor of the GRAMMY Blogger program and this year, Hilton has proudly become one of the title partners of the exclusive Pre-GRAMMY Gala which is held at the luxurious The Beverly Hilton, home of the first-ever GRAMMY Awards.

One of this year's new partners is Hyundai, the "official vehicle partner" of the GRAMMY Awards. Hyundai will have its Sonata Hybrid on display for GRAMMY attendees to see and interact with as they enter and exit the show and head to the official GRAMMY Celebration after-party. Inside the after-party, Hyundai will feature its award-winning Equus for guests to view and they will also provide guests with luxury lounges equipped with cigars and a gaming area.

After recently renewing its overall partnership with The Recording Academy and GRAMMY Awards, MasterCard has returned as the "official financial services and payment sponsor" of the GRAMMYs. Each year MasterCard hosts contest winners from around the world giving them a truly up close and personal "priceless" experience with a variety of festivities and this year is no exception. MasterCard cardholders will attend the exclusive Clive Davis pre-GRAMMYs Gala; be seated in the best seats in the house during the show and have access to experience Priceless Lounges both during the GRAMMYs and during the official after party.  The winners' experiences will be shared through MasterCard's social media properties, and for the first time MasterCard will also give Los Angeles residents a chance to have a "priceless" seat on the red carpet in the MasterCard Grandstand. MasterCard's partnership also includes support for the star-studded Clive Davis & Pre-GRAMMY Gala and official GRAMMY Celebration After Party. For the third year, MasterCard will present the Celebration's Jazz Lounge featuring members of the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra playing Latin-inspired jazz to complement this year's "Carnival" theme.

Long-time Academy partner PEOPLE magazine returns as the "official print media partner" of the GRAMMY Awards for the eighth consecutive year. In addition to PEOPLE's extensive coverage of all GRAMMY Week events, a special GRAMMY wrap-up issue will be available for readers the week of Feb. 18, providing everyone that attended or watched on TV all the exciting coverage, including interviews from their People.com position on the red carpet.

Pepsi, the "official beverage partner" of the GRAMMY Awards, is a new partner that has brought a unique experience to its consumers and music fans everywhere. Pepsi, in partnership with The Recording Academy and Pandora, presented an exclusive "Best New Artist" video series on Pandora.com. Pepsi has always been known for its involvement with music and this year, in addition to the Best New Artist video series, presented a 5 Questions With series on GRAMMY.com that gives online fans the opportunity to discover potential GRAMMY nominees and winners.

Another exciting new partner this year is Procter & Gamble, highlighting COVERGIRL, Olay & Venus. This partnership brings the "beauty" back to GRAMMY sponsorships along with a large digital component. COVERGIRL, Olay and Venus kicked off GRAMMY Week on Monday with "GRAMMY Glam" with GRAMMY.com curating the beauty conversation online at www.glam.grammy.com. The conversation began the night of GRAMMY nominations and included the opportunity for  guests to take "glam" photos that were uploaded to the official GRAMMY Facebook page. The beauty conversation that took place from Nominations through GRAMMY Week will be highlighted on GRAMMY.com and on the GRAMMYs' social sites via the hashtag #GRAMMYGlam.

For the fourth year, Waste Management is the "official recycling partner" of The Recording Academy and GRAMMY Awards. Waste Management continues to support The Recording Academy throughout the year — raising and reinforcing member and consumer awareness regarding the importance of responsibly recycling electronics and engaging in consistent recycling behaviors at home, at work, and "on the go." Waste Management co-presented The Sound Of Social Change Summit with The Recording Academy — a thought-provoking conversation that took place today. In addition, Waste Management will provide guests a fun and engaging RECYCLING ROCKS™ lounge at the GRAMMY Celebration featuring a DJs, an interactive photo booth and iconic artist scenery.

Dial Global Radio Network will produce its annual "Backstage at the GRAMMYs" radio remotes, bringing in radio stations from across America, as well as radio stations from various countries around the globe, to broadcast live from GRAMMY rehearsals. Dial Global will help promote this year's telecast and various GRAMMY Week events throughout its network programming.

The 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards will be held on Sunday, Feb. 12, 2012, at STAPLES Center in Los Angeles and will be broadcast in HDTV and 5.1 Surround Sound on the CBS Television Network from 8 – 11:30 p.m. (ET/PT). The show will be supported on radio via Westwood One worldwide, and covered online at GRAMMY.com and CBS.com, including three days of streaming GRAMMY Live coverage on GRAMMY.com at www.grammy.com/live and www.cbs.com. For GRAMMY coverage, updates and breaking news, please visit The Recording Academy's social networks on Twitter and Facebook: www.twitter.com/thegrammys, www.facebook.com/thegrammys.

For more information on GRAMMY Awards sponsors, please log on to:  www.covergirl.com, www.delta.com, www.harman.com, www.hilton.com, www.hyundaiusa.com, www.mastercard.com, www.olay.com, www.people.com, www.pepsi.com, www.venus.com, www.wm.com and  www.dialglobal.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.

SOURCE The Recording Academy