NEW YORK, NY. (Top40 Charts/ Atlantic Records) - "LATE NIGHT SPECIAL," the smash second album from Blue Star Entertainment International/Atlantic recording group Pretty Ricky, has been certified gold by the RIAA for sales exceeding 500,000. The album, which debuted at No 1 on the Billboard 200 and "Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums" charts upon its release earlier this year, features the blockbuster hit singles "
On The Hotline" and "Push It Baby."
The Florida-based foursome is currently featured in MTV's feature-length new "Sweet 16: The Movie," a film inspired by the hit series, "My Super Sweet 16." "Sweet 16: The Movie" is the first-ever mobile feature-length film premiere on MediaFLO USA's mobile television entertainment service and marks the first time an original MTV movie has debuted on Comcast's Movies On Demand (MOD) service. In addition, the film recently had its MTV premiere, and is now available for purchase on DVD through Paramount Home Entertainment.
"LATE NIGHT SPECIAL" is already among the year's most honored releases, scoring a "Best R&B Album" nomination at the 2nd Annual Ozone Magazine Awards, part of the eagerly anticipated 2007 TJ's DJ's Tastemaker DJ/Music Conference in Miami. Among its many other accolades, the album recently earned Pretty Ricky a BET Award for "Best Costume" in a Video, as well as an award nomination for "Best Group." The group's live performance on the BET Awards Pre-Show was among the highlights of the annual extravaganza.
An electrifying stage act, Pretty Ricky recently wrapped up the first leg of its BET-sponsored cross-country headline tour. Dubbed the "BET Late Night Special Tour," the dates were routed using the latest live performance phenomenon, Eventful Demand, an online service which allows fans to determine a tour's stops by creating grass-roots campaigns to "Demand" their favorite performers come to their town. A further series of 2007 concert dates will be announced shortly.
"Love Like Honey," the third single from "LATE NIGHT SPECIAL," is set to impact at multi-format radio outlets nationwide, kicking off in late August. In addition, MTV.com recently posted an on-set report from the companion video's production - https://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1564242/20070706/index.jhtml. The "Love Like Honey" video is slated to make its eagerly anticipated debut August 8th on BET's "Access Granted."
"Love Like Honey" follows Pretty Ricky's two previous smash singles, "On The Hotline" and "Push It Baby." The former was a top 15 crossover hit on Billboard's "Hot 100," while also reaching No 2 on both Urban and Rhythmic airplay charts.
"Push It Baby" remains a radio favorite, scoring major play at Urban, Rhythmic, and Top 40 outlets across America. The track's video was equally successful, reaching No 2 on BET's 106 & Park, while also receiving significant rotation on both MTV and MTV Jams.
Earlier this year saw Pretty Ricky - rappers Slick 'Em, Baby Blue, and Spectacular, and singer Pleasure - making its late night television debut, performing "On The Hotline" and "Push It Baby" on ABC's "Jimmy Kimmel Live." Further, the group has been profiled in a wide array of national publications, including a cover feature in Black Beat, and major pieces in People, USA Today, Hip Hop Weekly, Blender, Sister 2 Sister, Word Up!, Vibe, MIA, and The Source.
"LATE NIGHT SPECIAL" has also proven a massive ringtone success, with over 1 million sold thus far. The ringtone for "Love Like Honey" has already sold over 83,000 units according to Nielsen's Ringscan report, while "On the Hotline" has been certified gold after peaking at No 2 on Nielsen Ringscan's "Top 200 Mastertones" chart.
Pretty Ricky is also hugely popular online, with close to 600,000 friends registered on their MySpace page, placing them in the upper ranks of MySpace's "Top Artists." At YouTube, the group's "Pretty Ricky TV" - which features a variety of exclusive videos - is currently among the "Most Viewed Musicians" pages.
Written and produced almost entirely by Pretty Ricky and the exclusive production team Music Royale Productions, "LATE NIGHT SPECIAL" follows the group's 2005 blockbuster debut album, "BLUESTARS."
For more information, please visit www.prettyricky.com and www.myspace.com/prettyricky.