LADY GAGA TO PERFORM LIVE FROM TIMES SQUARE ON "DICK CLARK'S NEW YEAR'S ROCKIN' EVE WITH RYAN SEACREST 2012," DECEMBER 31 ON ABC

40th Anniversary of "NYRE" to Begin at 8:00 p.m., ET with New Two-Hour Special, "New Year's Rockin' Eve: The 40th Anniversary Party"

Lady Gaga will perform live in front of a crowd of an estimated one million people in Times Square just before the ball drops on "Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve with Ryan Seacrest 2012," SATURDAY, DECEMBER 31 on the ABC Television Network. To mark the 40th anniversary of the cherished New Year's Eve celebration, the festivities will begin at 8:00 p.m., ET with a new two-hour special entitled "New Year's Rockin' Eve: The 40th Anniversary Party." Lady Gaga is a true phenomenon; her third studio album, "Born This Way," was released on May 23, 2011 and broke the iTunes record for the fastest rise to No. 1 on release day. The album hit No. 1 in 22 of 23 iTunes stores worldwide. The first single from the album, title track "Born This Way," set a music industry record by becoming the fastest single in history to reach sales of 1,000,000 copies (five days after its February 11 release).

"New Year's Rockin' Eve: The 40th Anniversary Party" will be hosted from Times Square and Los Angeles with exciting live performances by some of this year's biggest hit makers. The celebration will also look back at the amazing moments from four decades of ringing in the New Year with the biggest names in the world of music and entertainment. Dick Clark and Ryan Seacrest will host "Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve with Ryan Seacrest 2012" beginning at 10:00 p.m., ET from New York on Saturday, December 31 on the ABC Television Network. Fergie of The Black Eyed Peas will return to host the Los Angeles-based portions of the specials.

Dick Clark said: "It hardly seems possible that we began telecasting 'New Year's Rockin' Eve' 40 years ago. Armed with just a couple of cameras and a skeleton crew, my wife and I stood atop a Times Square building and watched the thousands of happy celebrants in Times Square. The army of talent we had join us over the years has truly been outstanding, and this year we top it off with an appearance by Lady Gaga. 'New Year's Rockin' Eve 2012' promises to be one of the most exciting ever, and I'm proud to be part of the team."

Ryan Seacrest said: "Lady Gaga is one of the most exciting and relevant artists of our time, and we're thrilled to have her join 'New Year's Rockin' Eve' this year in Times Square. I'm especially honored to share the stage with the legendary Dick Clark, who is celebrating his 40th year hosting the show, which he created and transformed into one of the most iconic American television programs. We're really thrilled to see how this year's lineup lights up the stage to make it the most memorable show yet."

The bi-coastal celebration will include over 5 1/2 hours of special performances and reports on New Year's celebrations from around the globe, as well as the American tradition of Dick Clark counting down to midnight from Times Square in New York City.

The complete lineup beginning Saturday night, December 31 on ABC is:

"New Year's Rockin' Eve: The 40th Anniversary Party" (8:00-10:00 p.m., ET)

"Dick Clark's Primetime New Year's Rockin' Eve with Ryan Seacrest 2012" (10:00-11:00 p.m., ET)

"Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve with Ryan Seacrest 2012, Part 1" (11:30 p.m. - 1:08 a.m., ET)

"Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve with Ryan Seacrest 2012, Part 2" (1:08-2:11 a.m., ET)

"Dick Clark's Primetime New Year's Rockin' Eve with Ryan Seacrest 2012" is a presentation of dick clark productions, inc with Dick Clark, Ryan Seacrest and Orly Adelson serving as executive producers. Larry Klein produces.

About Lady Gaga

Lady Gaga came to prominence following the release of her debut studio album, "The Fame" (2008), which included the hits "Just Dance," "Poker Face" and "Bad Romance," and sold over 15 million copies worldwide. The album earned her six Grammy nominations and two wins, as well as a slew of other awards and nominations, including a record-setting 13 MTV Video Music Award nominations. Gaga is the first artist in history to claim four No. 1 hits from a debut album ("Just Dance," "Poker Face," "LoveGame" and "Paparazzi").

Lady Gaga is well-recognized for her outré sense of style as a recording artist, in fashion, in performance and in her music videos. Her contributions to the music industry have garnered numerous achievements, including five Grammy Awards among 12 nominations, two Guinness World Records and the estimated sale of 15 million albums and 51 million singles worldwide. Billboard named her both the 2010 Artist of the Year and the top selling artist of 2010, ranking her as the 73rd Artist of the 2000s decade. Gaga has been included in Time's annual The 2010 Time 100 List of the Most Influential People in the World, as well as Forbes' list of The World's Most Powerful Celebrities. Forbes also placed her at No. 7 on their annual list of The World's 100 Most Powerful Women.