(CelebrityAccess MediaWire) —
Dedicated to providing a vast audience of music fans with early access to the hottest developing artists, AOL Music is spotlighting six up-and-coming artists through its innovative Breakers program: Australia’s 20-year-old Pop-rockers, The Veronicas (Sire); contemporary country singer Keith Anderson(Arista Nashville); hip hop singer/songwriter Yummy Bingham (Motown); British pop chanteuse Natasha Bedingfield (Epic); R&B singer/songwriter Trey Songz(Atlantic) and Chicago pop-punks Fall Out Boy (Island). These artists and their music will be featured on aolmusic.com and across the AOL Music and Radio Networks.
"It's amazing that AOL chose us as part of the Breakers program," said Fall Out Boy’s Pete Wentz. "We feel that with their involvement, we can reach another level of fans who might not have heard us. We are honored that they are behind us and it’s a winning combination for all.”
"With traditional TV, radio and touring pipelines growing narrower in their willingness and ability to support new music, it is especially satisfying to serve artists with our Breakers program,” said Jack Isquith, executive director of music industry relations for AOL Music. “The mainstream audience for music has moved to the Web and opened a new world of opportunity for developing acts to connect with fans. We feel strongly that this is our most impressive group of Breaker artists to date, and we remain committed to championing new music to our ever growing audience.”
Past AOL Music Breakers alumni include Josh Groban, The Game, Michelle Branch and John Legend. The program’s latest success story is Sugarland, the first country group to be named to AOL Music's Breakers program, who made their debut on AOL Music in September 2004.
"AOL Music has been an invaluable partner in helping to bring Sugarland to the masses,” said Luke Lewis, co-chairman of Universal Music Group Nashville. “They are incredibly dedicated to developing artists, and have the expertise to create compelling campaigns that really resonate with music fans online. There's no denying that the band's success is due in part to the ability to interact with millions of music fans through the Breakers program."
–Jane Cohen and Bob Grossweiner
