Riffage Shines the Spotlight on the World's Most Popular Musical Talent Paired With the Rising Star Artists They've Inspired; "Riffage Spotlight" to Feature Music by Dido, Jay-Z, Toni Braxton, Eminem, The Who and More

Business Wire, Oct 19, 2000

Business Editors & High-Tech Industry Writers

PALO ALTO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 19, 2000

For fans looking to find music by their favorite established and indie artists in one destination, the Net just got brighter.

Riffage, Inc., an Internet pioneer in digital music, today unveiled its "Riffage Spotlight," an online showcase featuring Riffage indie bands alongside the famous BMG Entertainment and Universal Music Group artists who inspired them. Music fans visiting the spotlight can view profiles of famous special-guest artists, listen to their music via streaming or download, check out Riffage artists who share similar musical styles and much more.

Beginning today, songstress Dido commands the spotlight, along with Riffage artists Rachael Sage, Karry Walker and Ann Hudspeth. Other scheduled performers, include hip-hop star Outkast (Oct. 26-Nov. 1), pop diva Toni Braxton (Nov. 2-8), rap phenomena Jay-Z and Eminem (Nov. 9-15), rising soulful rock band, Robert Bradley's Blackwater Surprise (Nov. 16-22) and rock icons The Who (Nov. 23-29). Riffage Spotlight can be accessed directly through the site's homepage at www.riffage.com.

"Anyone who has an interest in how popular music impacts the work of emerging artists is going to love Riffage Spotlight," said Page Murray, vice president of marketing at Riffage, Inc. "Riffage Spotlight merges the best of both worlds, giving fans access to major-label talent that they already know and love, while continuing to introduce them to the fresh, breakthrough artists for which Riffage is known."

Riffage Spotlight comes as a result of the company's previously announced agreement with GetMusic LLC, the online music content and commerce company backed by BMG Entertainment and Universal Music Group. Through this alliance, both companies agreed to create one of the Net's premier online showcases where music fans can discover new musical acts while also having direct access to content and music from celebrated artists.

Riffage Spotlight lets music fans check out biographies and background information on special-guest artists, listen to featured songs from their music catalogue via streaming or download and opt to purchase the music they've listened to. For BMG/UMG artists' music and merchandise purchases, fans simply click on a direct link to GetMusic's online store (www.getmusic.com). For indie artists' music and merchandise purchases, fans are linked directly to the artists' band page on the Riffage site.

During the past month, a number of top-rated acts were featured, including GetMusic artists Built to Spill and Pantera; 1500 Records artist David Holmes; and performers from the trance CD Electric Daisy Carnival and the upcoming compilation Tattoo the Earth: The First Crusade, both on 1500 Records. All past artist spotlights are archived and available for viewing via the Riffage Spotlight site page.

Determining which Riffage artists will share the spotlight along with popular performers starts with the company's professional artist relations team. This team identifies site-featured indie bands whose music shares a similar sound and style to upcoming popular spotlight acts. Riffage then uses the site's data mining capabilities, including a review of the band's music fan ratings, fan e-mail interaction and current counts for music streams and downloads, to determine which artists are rapidly building a fan base and will ultimately make a great spotlight addition.

"The whole Riffage experience of being showcased next to like-minded artists and having our music served up center stage to thousands of music fans is very cool for an indie act like me," said Karry Walker.

About Riffage, Inc.

Riffage, Inc., is an Internet pioneer in digital music, recognized industry-wide for its unique way of connecting artists and fans on the basis of personal musical taste. With state-of-the-art communications, live programming, community features and e-commerce, Riffage delivers a powerful forum for discovering both indie and popular music in a format that's compelling, personalized and easy-to-use. The company's Riffage Live division produces live and on-demand webcast programming from major music events across the globe and its own indie-artist TV showcase. The division also manages Riffage's venue, San Francisco's legendary Great American Music Hall, which serves as its premier facility for hosting live concerts and webcasts for emerging and popular artists. Through its 1500 Records division, Riffage provides select artists with professional music label representation, utilizing an industry-breakthrough business model that combines traditional A & R services with powerful Internet-based research and marketing.

Riffage, based in Palo Alto, Calif., is a privately-owned company. Company investors include AOL, Bertelsmann Ventures, BMG Entertainment, Mayfield Fund and TransCosmos USA. More information is available at http://www.riffage.com.