Nick Lachey Goes Solo on MTV

The Nick Lachey Project is Set to Air April 2005

Nick Lachey's Album Will Be Released on Jive/Zomba Label Group

UNIVERSAL CITY, Calif., Jan. 14 -- MTV follows America's favorite pop star and husband through the most crucial months of his solo music career. After attaining huge success with his former band 98 Degrees and becoming a reality show sensation with "Newlyweds," Nick may look like he has it all. However, his first love is music and in "The Nick Lachey Project" (working title), which is tentatively set to premiere in April 2005, he sets out to take his music career to the next level.

MTV cameras are given total access behind the entire process from Nick building a studio inside his home, hiring producers and writers, signing with Jive Records, part of the Zomba Label Group, recording, and finally working with the label to get his CD in stores. Throughout the journey, Nick is completely submerged in the artistic process. He's going to give it everything he's got and he invites his fans along to hear the songs and see the stories that culminate with the release of his record.

"We fell in love with Nick as he became America's favorite TV husband," said Lois Curren, Executive Vice President, MTV Series Entertainment. "The Nick Lachey show will remind everyone of why we fell in love with him first and that was because of his music."

"Viewers will see a different side of me than in 'Newlyweds' and be able to understand exactly what goes into the making of an album," said Nick Lachey. "We will document the entire process of working with Jive, recording songs and promoting the album. I look forward to sharing this experience with my fans."

"Beyond being a household name and TV star, the world has missed out on the fact that Nick Lachey is also a great singer and star recording artist," said Barry Weiss, President and CEO of the Zomba Label Group. "We are very excited to be involved with him in his music career going forward."

Nick Lachey arrived on the music scene in 1997 as a part of the group 98 Degrees. An Ohio native and graduate of the Cincinnati School for the Creative and Performing Arts, Nick has always had a simple philosophy about success: work hard, have faith and eventually you'll reach your goal.

Executives in Charge of Production for "The Nick Lachey Project" are Greg Johnston, Lois Curren, and Rod Aissa.

MTV Networks, a division of Viacom International Inc. (NYSE: VIA, VIA.B), owns and operates the following television programming services -- MTV: MUSIC TELEVISION, MTV2, mtvU, VHI, NICKELODEON, NICK at NITE, COMEDY CENTRAL, TV LAND, SPIKE TV, CMT, NOGGIN, MTV INTERNATIONAL and THE DIGITAL SUITE FROM MTV NETWORKS, a package of 12 digital services, all of which are trademarks of MTV Networks. MTV Networks also has licensing agreements, joint ventures, and syndication deals whereby all of its programming services can be seen worldwide.

SOURCE MTV
Web Site: http://www.mtv.com