ULTIMATE RUN D.M.C.

 ULTIMATE RUN-D.M.C. Features Bonus DVD As A Tribute Fit For The Kings Of Rock!

October 2003 (Newstream) -- Twenty years after their breakthrough debut on the Black Singles chart, ULTIMATE RUN-D.M.C. pays fitting tribute to the pioneering hip-hop group with a special two-disc CD-and-DVD package that will arrive in stores on October 28th, it was announced today by Antonio "L.A." Reid, president and CEO, Arista Records.

The extra-value-added collection marks the first time that a full-length 18-track anthology of Run-D.M.C. hit singles, definitive album tracks, and impossible-to-find rarities (including single B-sides and live material) has been coupled in one package with 14 of their memorable video clips. The entire set is made even more indispensable with the inclusion of a vintage mini-documentary on the group's long-time label Profile Records (acquired by Arista in 1999) along with a comprehensive Run-D.M.C. discography.

Run-D.M.C. first appeared on the Billboard Black Singles chart on May 21, 1983, with "It's Like That" b/w "Sucker M.C.'s (Krush-Groove 1)," a landmark event in hip-hop history. The group was organized the year before in the New York City neighborhood of Hollis, Queens, by teenage rappers Joey 'Run' Simmons and Darryl McDaniels; they soon brought turntablist 'Jam-Master' Jay Mizell into the lineup and Run-D.M.C. was born. (ULTIMATE RUN-D.M.C. presents a live rarity from 1983, the only released version of "Here We Go"; and another live rarity from 1984, the only released version of "Together Forever (Krush Groove 4)," both from long out-of-print compilations.)

After another pair of singles, including "Jam-Master Jay" and "Rock Box" (both featured on ULTIMATE RUN-D.M.C.), they issued their self-titled debut album in early '84. The second album arrived in 1985, King Of Rock, whose title track was their fourth top 20 Hot Black Singles hit in less than two years.

The turning point for Run-D.M.C. - and Rap Nation - occurred when they teamed up with Aerosmith's Steve Tyler and Joe Perry for a regrooved version of the band's 1976 hit "Walk This Way." Hip-hop finally won its pop audience as the single earned RIAA gold and opened up a big door for rap music - and Run-D.M.C. became the first act to reach the top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100. As rap's premier act, they took b-boy stance to stadium rock amplification and become the first rap act on MTV, American Bandstand, Saturday Night Live, and the covers of both Spin and Rolling Stone. They were the first rap act to sign a major endorsement deal (Adidas) and sell out arenas.

They were also the first rap act to earn an RIAA gold album (Run -D.M.C.), first to go platinum (King Of Rock), and first to hit multi platinum with the 3 million selling Raising Hell. That album is well represented on ULTIMATE RUN-D.M.C., with "Walk This Way," "My Adidas," and "It's Tricky," as well as the standout tracks "Peter Piper," "Hit It Run," and title tune "Raising Hell."

The streak continued with the next album, 1988's Tougher Than Leather, which spun off another pair on the Hot Black Singles chart, "Run's House" b/w "Beats To the Rhyme"; and "Mary, Mary." Billboard's Hot Rap Singles chart was finally inaugurated in 1989. Ironically, Run-D.M.C.'s only appearance at #1 Rap was also their final top 10 R&B/Hip-Hop hit, 1993's RIAA gold "Down With the King," title track of their last album for nearly a decade, the #1 R&B, RIAA gold Down With the King.

Run-D.M.C. re-emerged on Arista in 2001 with Crown Royal, an all-star album featuring an A-list of collaborators, including Jermaine Dupri, Everlast, Fat Joe, Kid Rock, Method Man, Nas & Prodigy of Mobb Deep, Sugar Ray, as well as tracks with Jagged Edge, Limp Bizkit's Fred Durst, and Third Eye Blind's Stephan Jenkins. Arista followed up in September 2002 with Greatest Hits, an 18-song CD that included - for the first time on any album - the 1998 remix of "It's Like That" by 'Run-D.M.C. vs. Jason Nevins,' a massive U.K. and Euro club hit.

With the senseless murder of Jam-Master Jay in a Queens recording studio on October 30, 2002, the saga of rap's most important trailblazers came to a close. The musical legacy they left behind on their seven original albums, however, will continue to inspire hip-hop hopefuls for years to come. ULTIMATE RUN-D.M.C., which makes their music and video productions available together for the first time, is the ultimate tribute to Hollis' favorite rhymesters.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE VISIT THEIR WEBSITE AT www.arista.com