BASKING RIDGE, N.J. (Map) - BASKING RIDGE, N.J., March 28 /PRNewswire/ -- Verizon Wireless and multi-platinum-selling, GRAMMY(R)-winning artist Keith Urban have joined forces for a 26-city, 28-concert tour dubbed "Love, Pain and the Whole Crazy Carnival Ride." The tour kicks off Verizon Wireless' partnership with Keith Urban and promises to extend the excitement of Urban's incendiary live show beyond the concert stage using mobile technology in a variety of ways.

Through May 3, 2008, Verizon Wireless customers can use Song ID, the music discovery tool on their V CAST-enabled phones, to identify the songs "Everybody" or "I Told You So" from

Keith Urban and automatically enter to win a private Backyard BBQ and show with Keith in Nashville, Tenn. Five winners, along with nine of their closest friends, will be invited to Nashville for this exclusive event, hotel and airfare included. Keith Urban fans can visit the "Music and Tones" section of the Get It Now(R) virtual store on their Verizon Wireless phones to download the application. Once V CAST Song ID has been downloaded, customers can hold their mobile phones up to a speaker while playing one of the two Urban songs to identify the song. As soon as the song is identified, fans will automatically be entered into the contest. They will also have the opportunity to download the full Keith Urban song over-the-air, as well as the ringtone or ringback tone -- all with a click of a button on their phone's keypad.

Verizon Wireless customers can enter for a chance to win on their own or participate at one of the demo stations live at Keith's concerts. Fans can go to http://kuconcerts.com/enter/ to play Keith Urban music videos and learn how to get and use V CAST Song ID. From this Web page they can also add these music videos to their Facebook(R) profile using the Facebook Platform and share them with their friends to encourage them to enter the contest. The winners will be selected on May 5, 2008, and the BBQ event will take place in Nashville this June. No purchase is necessary to be entered into the contest.

"This is an exciting partnership that is able to deliver a dynamic and personal way for fans to enjoy the experience that is Keith Urban," said Ed Ruth, director of digital music for Verizon. "The fun begins the minute fans download their favorite tunes using Verizon Wireless V CAST Song ID and will continue when winners and their friends gather for a BBQ they will never forget."

Verizon Wireless extends the Keith Urban experience before and after each show by delivering the following opportunities at each venue:

The Keith Urban Experience

Twenty guests at each show will have a chance to meet Keith Urban in person by downloading his music, ringtones or ringback tones. These lucky winners will enjoy a special session with Keith as he takes group photos, shows a behind-the-scenes video of the making of the tour, performs an acoustic song, and answers fans questions in person. It's the ultimate backstage experience.

Green Screen

At select shows, fans have the opportunity to star in a performance video with Keith Urban's image via a green screen. Fans can choose to appear as though they are performing "I Told You So" with Keith or be serenaded by his performance of "Everybody." Video clips will be sent directly to fans via their mobile phones to share with their friends.

Mobile Tickets

Verizon Wireless customers in each of the tour cities who have downloaded any type of Keith Urban content from V CAST will be entered for a chance to win one of 20 pairs of tickets. These loyal customers and fans will receive a bar-coded ticket sent directly to their phones that is good for two premium seats to the hottest show in town.

Urban's "Love, Pain and the Whole Crazy Carnival Ride" tour is in support of his "Greatest Hits: 18 Kids" album, released in 2007, which features 16 of Urban's smash hits with two new recordings. His previous album, "Love, Pain and the Whole Crazy Thing" made history when its first single, "Once in a Lifetime," debuted at No. 17 on the Billboard Hot Country Song Chart, making it the highest debuting single in the chart's 62-year history. Urban's other hit albums include "Keith Urban," "Golden Road" and "Be Here." He won a GRAMMY for Best Male Country Vocal Performance in 2006 and has also won numerous Country Music Association, Academy of Country Music(R) and ARIA (Australia's GRAMMY) awards.

Fans can download Urban's songs, including his latest single, "Everybody," as ringback tones, true tones and full-song downloads both over-the-air and on their PCs via V CAST Music. Customers will be charged $1.99 per megabyte for data usage when downloading ringtones or ringback tones. However, megabyte pricing is not charged for downloading music, or text, picture and video messaging.

For more information on mobile music from Verizon Wireless, visit a Verizon Wireless Communications Store, call 1-800-2 JOIN IN or visit www.verizonwireless.com/music.

Remaining Keith Urban "Love, Pain and the Whole Crazy Carnival Ride" tour dates include: Date City Venue 4/09/08 Baltimore, Md. Baltimore Arena 4/10/08 Charlottesville, Va. John Paul Jones Arena 4/11/08 Charleston, W.Va. Charleston Civic Center 4/12/08 State College, Pa. Bryce Jordan Center 4/17/08 Charleston, S.C. North Charleston Coliseum 4/18/08 Charlotte, N.C. Bobcat Arena 4/19/08 Raleigh, N.C. RBC Center 4/22/08 Peoria, Ill. Peoria Civic Center 4/24/08 Gwinnett, Ga. Gwinnett Arena 4/25/08 Gwinnett, Ga. Gwinnett Arena 4/26/08 Lexington, Ky. Rupp Arena

About Verizon Wireless

Verizon Wireless operates the nation's most reliable wireless voice and data network, serving 65.7 million customers. Headquartered in Basking Ridge, N.J., with 69,000 employees nationwide, Verizon Wireless is a joint venture of Verizon Communications (NYSE: VZ) and Vodafone (NYSE and LSE: VOD). For more information, go to: www.verizonwireless.com. To preview and request broadcast- quality video footage and high-resolution stills of Verizon Wireless operations, log on to the Verizon Wireless Multimedia Library at www.verizonwireless.com/multimedia.

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