Miss O & Friends Launches “Miss O Music”
With Partners AOL and Recording Industry Veteran Producer/Songwriter John Boylan
Old Greenwich, CT and Dulles, VA September 25, 2007 -- Miss O & Friends By Girls ... For Girls®, the only lifestyle brand created and managed “by girls...for girls” ages 8-14, announced the launch of Miss O Music™ with partners KOL, AOL's kids site (http://www.kol.com) and recording industry veteran producer/songwriter John Boylan.
Beginning today, tween girls can express their musical talents – online and in the real world – by submitting their original or non-original songs on www.MissOandFriends.com for a chance to win the opportunity to have their voice or songs professionally produced and recorded.
To enter the Miss O Music competition, girls must be a registered Miss O Club member. After registering, they pay a $4.99 fee to submit a video performance. For full details, visit www.MissOandFriends.com. Video submissions will be posted on KOL.com and Miss O & Friends for viewing.
At the end of every week, kids visiting the Web sites will then vote exclusively on KOL, ultimately choosing the top winner in five categories including Best Original Song, Best Original Lyrics, Best Original Music, Best Singer and Best Performer. The final round of the competition will result in winners receiving a one-night hotel stay in New York or Los Angeles and two days of production and recording with a top industry producer at one of the Miss O Recording Studios.
Juliette Brindak, co-founder and Chairperson of Miss O & Friends said, “We created Miss O Music to give everyday girls the opportunity to shine and demonstrate their talent. Everything Miss O & Friends does is a direct response to what our Web site community of tween girls tells us they want. From the inception of our company, we have strived to help girls build on their dreams, to do what they love to do by tapping into their inner talents, and for many tween girls that is music.”
Brindak adds, “This is just like what we did with one of our six books, “Write-On,” where 15 girls were voted as winners by our Web site community to have their original stories published, which are now selling in Barnes & Noble, Borders, Target.com and Amazon.com.”
Jacqueline Moen, Vice President and General Manager, AOL Kids and Teens added, “At KOL, we consistently provide our users with the best content available on the Web for kids. We‘re thrilled to partner with Miss O & Friends because they are one of the leading sites for tween girls looking to connect online. Tween girls love music and singing and we are excited to give them the opportunity to make a professional record.”
Spearheading the Miss O Music initiative is John Boylan, one of the most successful record producers in contemporary music. Boylan has produced more than 50 albums which have sold more than 40 million records, and was also the creator of the hugely successful, Grammy-winning CD “Elmopalooza.” Boylan has a worked with artists as diverse as Linda Ronstadt, Charlie Daniels, Boston and the Little River Band, and has helped produce the movie soundtracks for the hit films, Footloose and Urban Cowboy. And he's excited about hearing the music that Miss O members submit: “For original material, the singer's ability and the quality of the song itself are vital. For girls that choose to perform famous or non-original music, we'll be looking at vocal ability, creative interpretation, and quality of singing.”
Boylan also notes that there are so many talented young people who remain undiscovered. "Right now, with the decline of the traditional record labels, the problem in the entertainment and music industry is getting heard. We believe Miss O Music is a great opportunity for young talented girls to get noticed. We see ourselves tapping into the phenomenon created by American Idol but online and for tween girls exclusively.”
Marissa Ditkowsky, a 13 year-old from Commack, NY is planning to submit a song. "I write songs all the time. Some come from real life where I take all of the emotions that I feel and other people I know have felt, into my songs."
Marissa entered the Miss O & Friends writing contest last year and one of her short stories was picked for publication. “I love the Miss O & Friends Web site, it's a great community helping girls my age connect and discover our inner talents and the best part is it's really safe with no chat, which is really important to my parents.”
About KOL
KOL® on AOL® is designed entirely for kids combining exclusive content from industry leading kids' brands and original programming. Reaching millions of kids each month, KOL is leading the next generation of children's entertainment with four animated online series, Princess Natasha™, SKWOD™, Kung Fu Academy™ and Pilar's Adventures™.
About Miss O & Friends By Girls…For Girls®
Miss O & Friends By Girls ... For Girls®, the only lifestyle brand created and managed “by girls…for girls,” ages 8-14, is committed to helping girls build self esteem. Hip (yet age appropriate), wholesome (but not Pollyanna-ish), the company fills the void for tween girls who have outgrown Barbie® and are not ready for Britney. Through www.MissOandFriends.com, tweens can play, create, learn, exchange ideas, get help, compare experiences, have their original stories published, their songs recorded and much more-all within a safe non-chat environment. Our real girls (Miss O, Juliette, Harlie, Justine and Isabella) and the many millions of tween girls who actually direct what goes on the Miss O & Friends Web site, yield billions of Web site hits, beating other sites such as Hello Kitty®, Trolls®, Barbie® and Bratz®, the Girl Scouts and many others.
Contacts
KOLSandra Correa, 212-652-6366Sandra.Correa@corp.aol.comorMiss O & FriendsLauren E. Garvey, 914-333-0111/201-566-4972lgarvey@missoandfriends.com
