VH1 and Starbucks Launch 'VH1 Hip Hop Honors' Sweepstakes

VH1 and Starbucks Launch 'VH1 Hip Hop Honors' Sweepstakes

Winners Fly To NYC for The 2006 Hip Hop Honors and Hang Out Backstage

Contest Entry Forms Available Exclusively At All Magic Johnson Starbucks Locations Across The Country

NEW YORK, Aug. 25 /PRNewswire/ -- VH1 and Starbucks have partnered to launch the VH1 HIP HOP HONORS SWEEPSTAKES, a new contest created to give one lucky hip hop fan the total celebrity experience at next year's 2006 VH1 Hip Hop Honors. The contest kicks off on August 26, 2005 and will run for a month, concluding on September 26, the same date that this year's 2005 VH1 Hip Hop Honors airs (9PM ET/PT.) All entrants must fill out an official sweepstakes entry form at any Magic Johnson Starbucks location in order to be eligible.

The winner will receive a trip for two to New York, a pair of VIP all access passes to the 2006 VH1 Hip Hop Honors, limousine transportation to the event and luxury hotel accommodations. The winner will also be invited to hang out on the red carpet as hip hop icons arrive before the show begins, attend the closed-door rehearsals, and meet the performers, honorees and hosts backstage throughout the night. Although the prize package will be awarded at next year's VH1 Hip Hop Honors, the winner will be given a special gift right away to coincide with this year's event. A special collection of CDs featuring all 2005 honorees will be immediately dispatched to the winner's home upon notification.

Entry forms are available at all Magic Johnson Starbucks locations throughout the country, including Los Angeles, New York, Chicago, Atlanta and Detroit. In all, there are 83 locations nationwide. The contest will begin on August 26th and run through September 26th. The winner will be selected randomly from the entries, and notified by (date). The sweepstakes was developed and is being coordinated through UMCA (Urban Marketing Corporation of America), a minority-owned firm specializing in entertainment and sport product marketing.

"As the #1 urban brand in America, it is nice to be recognized by VH1 as a source to connect their programming, their viewers and my Starbucks customers across the country," says Magic Johnson. "I am happy that VH1 is again honoring Hip Hop legends by hosting 'Hip Hop Honors' and I invite everyone into any one of my Starbucks to participate."

The second annual "VH1 Hip Hop Honors," broadcast on September 26 at 9PM (ET/PT.) This year's honorees include Big Daddy Kane, LL Cool J, Grandmaster Flash and The Furious Five, Notorious B.I.G., Ice T, Salt -N- Pepa, and the film: Boyz N The Hood. The 2005 "VH1 Hip Hop Honors" will be executive produced by

"VH1 Hip Hop Honors" Lee Rolontz for VH1 and Jac Benson for Blackjac Entertainment. Louis J. Horvitz will direct. Nelson George and Fab Five Freddie are Consulting Producers.

VH1 connects viewers to the music, artists and pop culture that matter to them most with series, specials, live events, exclusive online content and public affairs initiatives. VH1 is available in over 87 million households in the U.S. VH1 also has an array of digital services including VH1 Classic, VH1 Soul, VH Uno and VH1 Country. Connect with VH1 at http://www.vh1.com/.

VH1 is a registered trademark of MTV Networks, a unit of Viacom International Inc. MTV Networks also operates and offers joint ventures, licensing agreements and syndication deals whereby its programming can be seen worldwide.

Starbucks Corporation is the leading retailer, roaster and brand of specialty coffee in the world, with more than 8,000 retail locations in North America, Latin America, Europe, the Middle East and the Pacific Rim. The Company is committed to offering the highest quality coffee and the Starbucks Experience while conducting its business in ways that produce social, environmental and economic benefits for communities in which it does business. In addition to its retail operations, the Company produces and sells bottled Frappuccino(R) coffee drinks, Starbucks DoubleShot(R) coffee drink, and a line of superpremium ice creams through its joint venture partnerships. The Company's brand portfolio provides a wide variety of consumer products. Tazo Tea's line of innovative premium teas and Hear Music's exceptional compact discs enhance the Starbucks Experience through best-of-class products. The Seattle's Best Coffee(R) and Torrefazione Italia(R) Coffee brands enable Starbucks to appeal to a broader consumer base by offering an alternative variety of coffee flavor profiles.

The Urban Marketing Corporation of America is one of the leading urban marketing agencies in the country, with a long list of best in class clients that include Nike, VH1, Nickelodeon and HBO. Recent projects include HBO's original film Lackawanna Blues, USA Network's Kojak, the VH1 Hip Hop Honors. Based in Los Angeles, UMCA designs and executes fully integrated marketing campaigns to reach minority audiences through traditional and non-traditional approaches.

Contact: Brett Henne/VH1

212/846-6752

Source: VH1

CONTACT: Brett Henne of VH1, +1-212-846-6752

Web site: http://www.vh1.com/

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