VELASQUEZ TO RECORD TRIBUTE WITH ALL-STAR CAST FOR VICTIMS, FAMILIES OF AMERICAN TRAGEDY

(NASHVILLE, TENN)-Word Records' award winning and multi-platinum selling artist Jaci Velasquez, along with a host of other notable music celebrities, has been invited to record "El Ultimo Adios" ("The Last Goodbye") to honor the victims and their families of the terrorist attacks that took place on American soil two weeks ago.

On Thursday, September 27, during coordinated recording sessions in Miami, Los Angeles, New York, Mexico City and Puerto Rico, Jaci will join artists Ricky Martin, Marc Anthony, Gloria Estafan, Shakira, Alejandro Fernadez, Thalia, Celia Cruz, Carlos Vives to perform "El Ultimo Adios." Emilio Estefan, along with Gian Marco and Jon Secada, wrote and will produce the song specifically as a tribute for the tragedy. Univision will be filming the sessions at each location so that video footage can be made available of this landmark recording. The video company is fully committed to this project and will be donating airtime to advertise the sale of the CD single.

"El Ultimo Adios" will be released and distributed by Crescent Moon Records through Sony Music, who has graciously contributed the first 100,000 units to be manufactured. Because the recording studios, producers, arrangers and engineers are all donating their services and time, 100% of the proceeds from the sales of the project will be donated to the American Red Cross and the United Way.

Prior to the national tragedy, Velasquez was invited by President George W. Bush to perform the National Anthem on Friday, September 14 at the White House for a Celebration of Hispanic Heritage event. She was also slated to attend the Latin GRAMMY Awards ceremony that same week in Los Angeles. Both events were cancelled in respect to the US crisis.

Besides her involvement with "El Ultimo Adios," Velasquez has also been garnering numerous successes in the Latin market with her No. 1 song, "Como se cura una herida," from her already-RIAA-Certified Gold and second Latin album release, Mi Corazón. As her 16th No. 1 single, "Como se cura una herida" topped the Billboard Latin pop chart for a full month.

Her next significant offering in the Latin market will be the highly anticipated and sixth studio project, Navidad, a holiday recording which is slated to release in November. The English version of the recording, Christmas, has already released (Sept. 18) to wide critical acclaim. Christian Retailing says the album "quietly announces its holiday presence like a whiff of evergreen, hot chocolate and fresh-baked cookies… Velasquez's new offerings are bound to become old favorites, glittering standouts on one of the top seasonal offerings of the year."

Touring in support of Christmas, Velasquez will embark on a major-market, 18-city tour with a full orchestra into cities such as Chicago, Houston, Detroit, Minneapolis, Cleveland, Kansas City, Austin, San Antonio, Grand Rapids, Dallas, among others. The Christmas tour will immediately follow Velasquez's tour of Central and South America in support of her Spanish language recordings.

At the age of 22, Jaci Velasquez is one of the most recognizable entertainers spanning two music genres, including Christian and the now-popular Latin genre. With only six years in the industry and six albums to her credit, Jaci has already garnered three RIAA certified Platinum recordings, including her record-breaking debut, Heavenly Place, and her Latin debut, Llegar a Ti. Sixteen of Jaci's singles have been No. 1 radio hits and she has received, to date, an impressive seven Dove Awards, three GRAMMY award nominations, 5 Billboard Magazine Award nominations, including two current video award nominations, and a Premio Lo Nuestro Award. Furthermore, last June, Jaci became a spokesmodel for John Frieda's Frizz-Ease Professional Hair Care line of products. During the two-year, nearly two million-dollar ad campaign, she will be featured in ads running in magazines such as Latina and People en Espanol, as well as on Latin-based television commercials.