Making the Band returns With Three New Albums From the Series Stars  1/28/08

MTV's "Making The Band" Returns With Three New Albums From the Series' Stars; New Singles From Danity Kane and MTB4 Finalists Arrive at Online Retailers Tomorrow; Full-Length Collections to Follow in March

NEW YORK, NY -- (MARKET WIRE) -- 01/28/08 -- Bad Boy Records has announced the upcoming release of three new albums from the stars of the hit MTV reality series, "Making The Band." The news comes as the highly rated series kicks off its latest season, beginning tonight, January 28th at 10pm ET/PT (check local listings).

"Making The Band 4," Season 2 will feature previous MTB sensations Danity Kane, along with last year's as-yet-unnamed quintet and additional MTB4 finalist Donnie Klang. The upcoming season will see all three acts living together as they work to complete new albums, which will then be released in the weeks to follow. The releases kick off on March 11th, with the arrival the MTB4 quintet's hotly anticipated debut album. The following week will see Danity Kane rolling out their eagerly awaited second album, due in stores on March 18th. Finally, Klang is set to unveil his currently in-the-works debut later this spring. All three collections are Executive Produced by Bad Boy CEO Sean "Diddy" Combs and Bad Boy Entertainment president Harve Pierre.

The albums will be heralded with two brand-new singles from Danity Kane and the MTB4 quintet, both set to drop at all online retailers on Tuesday, January 29th -- the day after the season premiere. Danity Kane's "Damaged" sees the RIAA platinum-certified girl group joining forces with the up-and-coming production team, Stereotypes, known for their hit collaborations with such artists as Cupid, Ne-Yo, and Omarion. "Got Me Going," the second single from the talented MTB4 performers, was produced by the one-and-only Mario Winans, a longtime Bad Boy family member, famed for his work with Diddy and The Notorious B.I.G., not to mention Destiny's Child, Mary J. Blige, Keyshia Cole, and countless others.

"Got Me Going" will proclaim the as-yet-untitled debut album from Brian Andrews, Mike McCluney, Qwanell Mosley (aka "Q"), Robert Curry, and Willie Taylor -- the five talented artists chosen by Diddy and MTV viewers around the world on the blockbuster "Making The Band 4" finale last September. In addition to the aforementioned Mario Winans, the collection features production from The Runners (T.I., Chris Brown, Rick Ross), Jim Bean, Grammy Award-winner Adonis (Diddy, Usher, Danity Kane), and multiple Grammy Award-winner Bryan Michael Cox (Usher, Mary J. Blige, Mariah Carey), who was featured on "Making The Band" helming the quintet's debut single, "Exclusive (No Excuses)."

"DAMAGED" is the sophomore album from Dawn, Aubrey, D. Woods, Shannon, and Aundrea, known worldwide as the top-charting five-girl outfit, Danity Kane. The set follows the "Making The Band 3"-winning group's blockbuster debut, which made a spectacular #1 debut on the SoundScan/Billboard 200 album chart upon its initial 2006 release. Fueled by the top 10 smash, "Show Stopper," the self-titled album went on to achieve RIAA platinum certification for U.S. sales exceeding one million units. Now, with "DAMAGED," Danity Kane have more than matched their Cinderella story debut, crafting an irresistible collection of new hits in association with such studio superstars as Danja, Stereotypes, Bryan Michael Cox, and Seven Aurelius (LL Cool J, Ashanti, Vanessa Carlton).

MTV's hit reality series "Making The Band 4" returns for another exciting season on Monday, January 28, 2008 at 10pm ET/PT. The new band hand-picked by Diddy reunite along with the surprise solo winner Donnie to begin their journey in the music industry. But there's a new twist...

This time around, platinum recording artists and winners of "Making The Band 3," Danity Kane joins the guys in the same house to begin working on their respective albums. Can the guys co-exist with women in the same space? This season features a new competition to see which group will finish their album first and all the drama that "Making The Band" fans enjoy from Diddy's infamous challenges to interesting hook-ups, feuds and more.

Coming off of the excitement of the highly rated season finale last summer, the new season follows the guys as they take the next step to becoming established artists and learn to work together as a group while living up to Diddy's high standards. Viewers will also get reacquainted with Danity Kane as the seasoned performers work on their second album.

MTV.com, VOD, and MTV Mobile, will enhance the "Making The Band 4" experience and further connect with the viewers by giving them exclusive access and behind the scenes content with trailers, episode recaps/follow-ups, cast profiles and interviews, photos, bios, and more. In addition the cast will sound off on "Remote Control," MTV.com's television blog.

The full season of the previous "Making The Band 4" ranked #1 in its regular time period (Mon 10-11pm) among F12-34 versus all cable competition, reaching over 61.1 million total viewers (P2+), with over 32.4 million from our P12-34 core. The live season finale of "Making The Band 4" earned a 3.19 rating and reached over 5.1 million viewers (P2+). The "Making The Band 4" Live Finale was the most watched telecast for the night (Sun 8-11pm) across all of television, even over-delivering the broadcast networks.

Sean "Diddy" Combs, Ted Iredell and Perry Dance will serve as executive producers. Jacquelyn French is the MTV executive overseeing the Making The Band' franchise. Francesca Spero is Producer for Bad Boy Entertainment.