WITH SPECIAL PERFORMANCES BY will.i.am, THE BLACK EYED PEAS, KELLY ROWLAND, DAVID GUETTA, DIPLO, KELIS AND MORE

INAUGURAL DATA AWARDS RECIPIENTS TO BE ANNOUNCED THURSDAY, JANUARY 28, 2010

will.i.am, The Black Eyed Peas, Dipdive.com and BlackBerry® host the biggest pre-party leading up to music’s most anticipated night.  The evening, featuring a high-energy benefit concert, will raise funds and awareness for the i.am scholarship and present the first annual Data Awards, honoring the most recognized DJs and Producers in dance music of 2009.  The amazing line-up of performers includes will.i.am, The Black Eyed Peas, Kelly Rowland, Diplo, David Guetta, Kelis and more! The Data Awards will be streaming from the Dipdive Nights event live at Dipdive.com starting at 9pm PST on Thursday, January 28th.

Exclusively partnering with lifestyle networking site Dipdive.com and BlackBerry, the Data Awards, pioneered by will.i.am, will recognize the growth and importance of the DJ and dance community and its contributions to the music industry. The Data Awards categories include: Best Dance DJ/Producer Solo; Best Dance DJ/Producer Group; Best Remix and Best Original Track.  Winners of the aforementioned categories will receive a custom BlackBerry® Bold™ 9700 smartphone from Dipdive. For more information on The Data Awards and Dipdive.com please visit www.Dipdive.com.

This event will benefit the i.am scholarship, which will.i.am launched to much excitement last year on the Oprah Show.  The fund provided four-year college scholarships to a group of students who were in significant need of financial assistance.  This year, the i.am scholarship will be awarded to students applying to programs in Computer Technology, Film and Television, Journalism and New Media.  100% of the donor’s proceeds from this event will go to the i.am scholarship.

will.i.am is best known to many as the front man and producer of the multi-platinum award-winning group The Black Eyed Peas.  He has established himself as one of the top music producers in the industry, collaborating on tracks with U2, John Legend, and Fergie among others. Building on his success, will ventured into acting taking on the role of John Wraith in X-MEN ORIGINS: WOLVERINE and lending his voice to MADAGASCAR 2: ESCAPE TO AFRICA. In the past year he has also extended his prowess into the arts, deejaying, technology, education, and politics.  His social networking site, Dipdive, continues to give will a platform to build upon all of his upcoming initiatives and partnerships.

The BlackBerry and RIM families of related marks, images and symbols are the exclusive properties and trademarks of Research In Motion Limited.

To request media credentials to cover this event, please contact Joanna Cichocki or Alicia Mohr at PMK*BNC joanna.cichocki@pmkbnc.com / alicia.mohr@pmkbnc.com

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