FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

MAY 2000

HOLLYWOOD’S HIPPEST, HYPEST, HOTTEST INNOVATORS CELEBRATE A DECADE OF UNPARRALLED SUCCESS!

Entrepreneurial Partners Greg Lites and Felipe Darrell

Mark the 10 Year Anniversary of ICON Entertainment,

Firmly Establishing Themselves as the

Entertainment Industry’s Top Event Promoters/Producers/Managers

It was 1985 when club Paradise 24 rocked the Hollywood night scene, situating itself as the West Coast version of New York’s legendary Studio 54. For five years the club reigned as Los Angeles’ premier party palace, jump starting the careers of celebrities the likes of MC Hammer, New Edition and Bobby Brown.

Native New Yorker, Greg Lites and Los Angelenos, Felipe Darrell, were the pivotal creative force behind the scenes of Paradise 24, producing and promoting some of the entertainment industry’s most sensational events and live shows to date. It is here that these two partners first began to hone a solid relationship and following with not only the general party going public, but with top celebrities and key executives spanning the music, film and sports industries.

In 1990, Lites and Darrell founded Icon Entertainment, a venture that has flourished into a promotional empire over the course of a decade. Icon Entertainment has not only monopolized nightlife in the highly competitive territory of Hollywood, CA, but has developed a highly successful music production arm as well and an artist management entity.

The fact that these two businessmen have secured over 14 leases in the course of 10 years, from the city’s most prestigious and elitist nightclubs throughout Hollywood and Beverly

Hills is not to be underrated. The Roxbury, Stringfellows, Bar One, Century Club, the Key Club, the Gate and the Garden of Eden are just a few of the hottest nighttime chambers that Icon has claimed.

Catering to an upscale clientele, while still providing nightlife stimuli to the masses, the dynamic duo has produced events for the likes of Sean “Puffy” Combs, Mariah Carey, Magic Johnson, Mike Tyson, Eric Dickerson, Carmen Electra, Denzel Washington, Vivica Fox and Alan Thicke, just to name a few. Hugh Hefner, Don King, Jay-Z, Shaquille O’Neil and Allen Iverson are just a sampling of the entertainers who have ventured through their doors.

“We were the first African Americans to establish an ownership/lease at the multi-media conglomerate, The Hollywood Palladium, back in the early ‘90’s” recalls Felipe. “After spending a million dollars in renovations, we extended the venue’s event calendar, which had been limited to rock, to include R&B, Latin, alternative and hip hop. We then expanded to include special events under our banner such as boxing, television shows and movie premiere parties. It was definitely an uphill battle, but our successful results paved the way and opened doors for us at other locales.”

“On the surface,” explains Greg, “many of our peers see us simply as party promoters. But realistically, the situation is far more complex. Just the politics of doing business in many of these establishments alone is mind blowing. Club owners worry about issues of violence and gang attendance. It is a battle of confronting stereotypes everyday. Even with our track record, we find ourselves having to continue to knock down walls.”

Icon Entertainment has perhaps the most revered direct mailing list in the business, with a total of 22,000 patrons combined. This along with their web site, icon-soureentertainment.com, two information phone lines, 5000 e-mail addresses, 6000 pager numbers, 500 industry fax numbers and an eight man street team, make Lites and Darrell a marketing phenomenon. Their ability to promote a special event at a moment’s notice is simply unparalleled!

Icon Entertainment’s reach taps far beyond special events however. Their database alone has secured them independent promotions contracts from record companies looking to launch new artists and announce record releases. In fact, this stronghold in music industry circles, has helped to secure the success of their music production company as well as the artist management arm. Icon Entertainment also houses their own state-of –the-art recording studio.

A third partner, Tina Gomes, helps them to oversee a roster of high profile artists. Icon Entertainment was the force behind R&B/pop girl group Jade, securing the group’s production deal with Giant Records and landing them distribution through Warner Bros. Icon Entertainment brought singer/songwriter/producer Jesse Powell to MCA Records, and garnered him a publishing deal with Chrysalis. The team then signed his sister, Trina Powell, and obtained a publishing contract for her at EMI.

Also on the management roster is the production team of Joachim Svare and Carsten Lindberg, a duo from Denmark with credits that include Chante Moore and Shanice Wilson; a four male R&B group, Jersey Ave., signed to MCA Records; rapper/actress, Raven; R&B crooners, Reign; producer/songwriters Wokie Stewart & Timmy Gatling, and producer Damon Thomas.

As Icon Entertainment heralds the advance of the new millennium, Greg Lites and Darrell Felipe will continue to forge new roads in entertainment circles. “Our vision has always been to give the people what they want and how they want it,” asserts Felipe. “Intriguing nightlife and good music rests at the foundation of Icon Entertainment. But behind the parties is a sound business plan that has made it all possible,” explains Greg. “From day one they told us we would never succeed. But we did and it’s been 10 years now. Now it’s time to do it even bigger and better!”

Icon Entertainment can be reached at (818) 783-5058. Hit their website at icon-sourceentertainment.com.

Pictured from left to right: Felipe Darrell and Greg Lites

Photo Credit: Renaldo Jackson