BURBANK, CA (Warner Bros. Records) - The formidable duo of
Jay-Z and
Linkin Park has debuted in the number one position on the Billboard Top 200 album chart with their release "MTV Ultimate Mash-Ups Presents - Jay-Z/Linkin Park: Collision Course," a CD + DVD package on Warner Bros. Records / Roc-A-Fella Records, selling more than 370,000 copies its first week. It is a first for a collaboration of this type.
For those music fans living under a rock, here's the story: On July 18, 2004, MTV brought Jay-Z and Linkin Park together for a tour-de-force performance at West Hollywood's famed Roxy Theatre in front of a select group of lucky fans. It was a meeting of musical minds inspired by mutual admiration and a passion for music, resulting in a combination of great songs "mashed" together as if they were meant to be paired in that way all along.
The evening proved to be stylistically grand, and artistically bold, as the famed Sunset Blvd. literally shook underneath the weight of these musical heavyweights on the same stage, mixing it up. It was a musically masterful performance that was filmed for the network to air as a pilot called "MTV ULTIMATE MASH-UPS." And what a show it was, making its debut on the MTV network November 10, 2004, to overwhelming positive reviews and fan response!
Most certainly, the mash-up concept had found a wider audience. Fans, clamoring for more, made it clear the performance needed to be released for home consumption, thus the "MTV Ultimate Mash-Ups Presents - Jay-Z/Linkin Park: Collision Course" CD + DVD package was born.
The CD features studio recordings of the same song combinations performed live on that unforgettable night. The tracks were cut in the studio with Linkin Park and Jay-Z while they rehearsed for the Roxy performance. Included are pairings such as "Dirt Off Your Shoulder/Lying From You," "Numb/Encore," "Izzo/In The End" and more.
The DVD contains the Roxy performance in 5.1 Surround Sound, plus a revealing behind-the-scenes documentary detailing the creative process of the collaboration. This poignant and fun feature will show you how, in just four days, Jay-Z and Linkin Park created, rehearsed, recorded and ultimately performed the songs that make up the ultimate mash-up album. Rousing live performances of "Numb/Encore," "Points Of Authority/99 Problems/One Step Closer" and "Izzo/In The End" and more are included.
Also included on the disc is the original broadcast version of "MTV ULTIMATE MASH-UPS," as well as an exclusive photo gallery of Linkin Park and Jay-Z images taken over the course of the project.
Linkin Park is making a number of appearances over the next several days in support of the new book "FROM THE INSIDE: Linkin Park's Meteora" (please see separate release for more details). The band will be conducting book signings at the following locations:
SAN FRANCISCO
Best Buy - Thursday, December 9
4820 Dublin Blvd.
Dublin
5:00pm
LOS ANGELES
Barnes & Noble - Friday, December 10
189 The Grove Drive
Los Angeles
7:00pm
NEW YORK CITY
Borders Books & Music - Tuesday, December 14
100 Broadway
New York, New York
5:30pm
Linkin Park is available for media opportunities at the in-store signings.
