EASY STAR SIGNS WITH MEGAFORCE/MRI
FOR DISTRIBUTION


April 1, 2005, New York, NY – Easy Star Records, the label behind the indie smash Dub Side of the Moon, has taken another step forward, signing with Megaforce/MRI for distribution. The label’s first release with MRI will be Pressure Points, the long anticipated new studio album by John Brown’s Body (street date April 26).

“We are very excited to join the MRI family,” said Easy Star VP Lem Oppenheimer. “MRI has a great reputation for diversity, for supporting its artists and labels. We think this move will not only help us sell more records, but continue to evolve our label into the unique indie we want to be.”

MRI boasts a roster that includes Rope-A-Dope; Burning Spear’s Burning Music; Iris Records; blues label Fat Possum; String Cheese Incident’s label; and many others. Easy Star CEO Eric Smith says, “While weighing our options, and checking around with other labels, we heard nothing but positive reports about working with MRI.” Megaforce/MRI is distributed by RED/Sony.

The Easy Star All-Stars’ Dub Side of the Moon has just moved to the top ten on Billboard’s Reggae Catalog Chart after spending over 100 consecutive weeks on the Reggae Chart. The record has sold over 70,000 copies worldwide to date and shows few signs of slowing down. The Easy Star All-Stars are also touring often to support the record, including playing last month’s RaggaMuffin Festivals in California during a week-long run on the West Coast that included several sold out shows.

For the past four years, Easy Star has been partnered with Big Daddy Music. Says Oppenheimer: “We are saddened to leave Big Daddy, but feel the time is right for us to take this step. We enjoyed great success with Big Daddy and learned tons from [Big Daddy Founder] Burt Goldstein and his team. We are leaving Big Daddy on very good terms and are looking forward to working with Missi Callazzo and MRI.”