For the first time ever, the excitement surrounding this year’s GRAMMY®s will reach new heights with a live music event in Las Vegas. The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA) has partnered with PEOPLE magazine and The Recording Academy® to celebrate the 49th GRAMMY® Awards season with PEOPLE magazine’s official GRAMMY Kick-Off Party Only in Vegas, which will be held on December 14, 2006 at JET Nightclub at The Mirage, one week after the GRAMMY nominations were announced in Los Angeles. The 49th Annual GRAMMY Awards will air live on CBS February 11, 2007.

Jamie Foxx, the Oscar®-winning actor and current three-time GRAMMY nominee, will host the event, and three of the hottest names in music will perform. Multi-platinum, GRAMMY-winning singer Fergie will headline the show with featured performances by John Ondrasik of Five For Fighting and Josh Kelley. DJ Samantha Ronson will keep the party moving into the night. Additional celebrities, musical artists and Las Vegas headliners will also join executives from the music and entertainment industries for this special night.

Las Vegas, the city that has long reigned as The Entertainment Capital of the World, continues to draw the best in music and entertainment from resident headliners such as Celine Dion, Elton John, Toni Braxton, Barry Manilow, Wayne Newton and Prince to year-around concerts and events.

“Las Vegas’ music scene has always captured the world’s imagination,” said Rossi Ralenkotter, president and CEO of the LVCVA. “People come to Las Vegas from all over not just to be a part of music events but to be a part of the entire Vegas experience.”

JET Nightclub, one of the newest hotspots on the Strip and home to a rotating list of celebrity DJs and special guests, will host this premiere event. JET, which features three dance floors and four bars on multiple levels, is located at The Mirage, which will provide accommodations for the event.

mark, the beauty and fashion boutique brand by Avon, is the event’s platinum sponsor. A “mark hook-up beauty bar” will showcase hundreds of mark’s hottest products, as well as a “hook-up/touch-up” station where guests can have their makeup refreshed by top mark make-up artists.

Additional sponsors include Red Bull, Fiji water and Trident.

The 49th Annual GRAMMY Awards will be held on Feb. 11, 2007, at the STAPLES Center in Los Angeles and broadcast by the CBS Television Network (8 – 11:30 p.m. ET/PT). PEOPLE is the official print media partner of The Recording Academy and the GRAMMY Awards.

Press Release