Ariana Grande to headline halftime show at 2015 NBA All-Star Game

NEW YORK – The National Basketball Association (NBA) announced today that singing sensation Ariana Grande will headline the 64th NBA All-Star Game halftime show during the “Entertainment Series presented by JBL” on Sunday, Feb. 15 at Madison Square Garden.  The game will air live at 8 p.m. ET on TNT.

Known for her wide range and powerful voice, Ariana Grande has taken the music world by storm.  Last year, Grande became the first woman in history – and the first artist since Michael Jackson – to simultaneously have three songs in the Top 6 of Billboard’s Digital Songs chart.  Additionally, her platinum-selling album “My Everything” and smash hit “Bang Bang” earned Grande her first Grammy nominations.  This year, Grande will add NBA All-Star halftime performer to her list of accomplishments when she takes the stage to regale fans with a compilation of her biggest hits.

With HARMAN serving as the Official Sound of the NBA, its featured brand, JBL, will serve as presenter of this year’s NBA All-Star Entertainment Series, bringing the excitement of musical performances to State Farm All-Star Saturday Night in addition to pregame introductions and the halftime show at Sunday’s All-Star Game.

About the Artist
Ariana Grande (Republic Records, Universal) – Within less than a year, Ariana Grande captured No. 1 on the Billboard Top 200 twice – first with her Republic Records debut “Yours Truly” and then with the 2014 follow-up album “My Everything.”  “Yours Truly” yielded the game-changing pop smash “The Way” featuring Mac Miller, which went double-platinum, landed in the Top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100 and seized No. 1 on the iTunes Overall Top Songs chart.  Meanwhile, her platinum-selling “My Everything” garnered a Grammy nomination for Best Pop Vocal Album and spawned the triple-platinum hit “Problem” featuring Iggy Azalea.  Upon the single’s release, Grande became the youngest woman to debut with over 400,000 first-week sales, while the song ranked as the fifth highest digital song debut for a female artist and ninth highest overall. Moreover, it debuted at No. 1 in 85 countries, topping the iTunes Overall Top Songs and Pop Songs charts for four weeks.  During release week, My Everything was No. 1 on Spotify as Grande personally rose to No. 1 on Billboard‘s Artists 100 chart.  She also became the first woman in history, and the first artist since Michael Jackson, to simultaneously have three songs – “Problem,” “Break Free” featuring Zedd, and “Bang Bang” with Nicki Minaj and Jessie J – in the Top 6 of the Digital Songs chart.  “Bang Bang” went platinum and earned a Grammy nomination for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance.  In 2013, Grande was named Best New Artist at the American Music Awards.  Grande also won Favorite Breakout Artist at the People’s Choice Awards 2014, the Young Influencer Award at the iHeartRadio Music Awards, the Radio Disney Chart Topper Award, and the Choice Female Artist and Choice Single Awards at the 2014 Teen Choice Awards.  In addition, “Problem” was named Best Pop Video at the 2014 MTV VMAS.

About NBA All-Star 2015
NBA All-Star 2015 in New York City will bring together some of the most talented and passionate players in the league’s history for a global celebration of the game.  The 64th NBA All-Star Game, which will take place Sunday, Feb. 15 at Madison Square Garden, will reach fans in 215 countries and territories in 47 languages.  TNT will televise the All-Star Game for the 13th consecutive year, marking Turner Sports’ 30th year of All-Star coverage, as well as the BBVA Compass Rising Stars Challenge on Friday, Feb. 13 and State Farm All-Star Saturday Night on Saturday, Feb. 14, which will both take place at Barclays Center in Brooklyn.  Other events at Barclays Center include the NBA Development League All-Star Game presented by Kumho Tire and the NBA Development League Dream Factory presented by Boost Mobile on Sunday, Feb. 15, airing on NBA TV.  Madison Square Garden will host Friday night’s ESPN-televised Sprint NBA All-Star Celebrity Game.

About HARMAN
HARMAN (www.harman.com) designs, manufactures and markets premier audio, visual, infotainment and enterprise automation solutions for the automotive, consumer and professional markets. With leading brands including AKG®, Harman Kardon®, Infinity®, JBL®, Lexicon®, Mark Levinson ® and Revel®, the Company is admired by audiophiles, musicians and the entertainment venues where they perform. More than 25 million automobiles on the road today are equipped with HARMAN audio and infotainment systems.  HARMAN has a workforce of approximately 16,600 people across the Americas, Europe, and Asia and reported sales of $5.6 billion for the 12 months ended September 30, 2014.  The Company’s shares are traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol NYSE:HAR.