FIFA and Sony Music Entertainment Choose “Time for Africa” by Shakira and Freshlyground as FIFA World Cup 2010™ Official Anthem

NEW YORK, NY – April tk, 2010 – FIFA and Sony Music Entertainment today announced that “Time for Africa,” a collaboration between global superstar Shakira and critically acclaimed South African music group Freshlyground, has been chosen as the Official Anthem of the upcoming 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa.

The track will be delivered to radio around the world during the week of April 19, 2010, and will be available for download through digital retail outlets on April 26, 2010.

Shakira and Freshlyground will perform the song live on June 10 at the official FIFA pre-tournament concert at Soweto Stadium in Johannesburg, South Africa, as well as before the start of the World Cup final in Johannesburg on July 11, 2010.

The video for "Time for Africa" will be available in standard definition as well as in 3D. The 3D version of the video will be offered in support of FIFA and Sony Corporation’s slate of 3D programming around the FIFA World Cup, which will include 25 World Cup matches that will be filmed and broadcast in 3D.

Reaffirming its leading position at the forefront of the emerging 3D market, Sony is the key technological enabler of this new viewing experience and enhances the excitement of football fans, either watching a football match live in the stadium or enjoying a new 3D experience through 3D TV channels or at public viewing events around the world. [NOTE: Please clarify preferred 3D language]

“The spirit of global competition that surrounds the FIFA World Cup is both thrilling and inspiring. Shakira and Freshlyground’s ‘Time for Africa’ perfectly captures these emotions and offers football fans around the world the ideal theme song to accompany the experience of rooting for their favorite team this summer,” said tk Sony Music Entertainment. "We are delighted to be working with FIFA, as well as with the host country South Africa, on the musical companion for this celebrated event."

“Time For Africa” will be among the songs featured on “Listen Up: The Official 2010 FIFA World Cup Album™,” which will be released by Sony Music Entertainment in the weeks preceding the event, which begins June 11, 2010.

“Listen Up: The Official 2010 FIFA World Cup Album™,” will feature creative collaborations between local African and international artists. It also will include the official song of the official event mascot Zakumi.

Discussions are underway with a range of other superstar artists about their participation in this World Cup album.

All of Sony Music's net profits are being donated to Africa-related charities [Please clarify] and all of FIFA’s net profits being donated to the Official Campaign of the 2010 FIFA World Cup™ "20 Centres for 2010" which will create 20 Football for Hope Centres for education, public health and football in disadvantaged communities across Africa.

Over the course of her career, Grammy winner Shakira has sold close to fifty million albums. Her collaborations with such stars as Beyonce and Alejandro Sanz have helped keep her audience expanding continually. She is the only artist from South America to have a Number One song in the US, and her performance was a highlight of the concert celebrating President Obama's inauguration. She has four of the twenty top-selling hits of the decade, more than any other artist—and that includes 2006's unforgettable "Hips Don't Lie," the biggest-selling single of the 21st Century, which reached the Number One spot in an astonishing 55 countries.

One of the few truly global superstars of our time, Shakira is extending her reach with her eighth studio album, SHE WOLF. The daring, innovative project is the long-awaited follow-up to 2005's groundbreaking one-two punch comprised of Fijacion Oral, Volume 1 and Oral Fixation, Volume 2, a pair of albums which combined to sell over 12 million copies worldwide and secured the young Colombian-born singer's place among pop music royalty.

Co-writing and producing this album, Shakira worked with a diverse range of superstar producers and songwriters—most notably, Pharrell Williams and the Neptunes, but also Wyclef Jean, Timbaland and John Hill —she has created an irresistible set of deceptively rich, club-ready tracks.

This sense of artistic exploration is no surprise coming from a woman who began writing songs at the age of eight, learned to speak English by studying the work of Bob Dylan, Leonard Cohen, and Walt Whitman, and took history classes at UCLA during her break between albums. The compassionate side of Shakira is most obvious in the remarkable work of her Pies Descalzos (Barefoot) Foundation, which she started at the age of 18 and has now opened it’s fifth school. The foundation currently provides education and nutrition to over six thousand impoverished children in Colombia and is working to expand its work to other countries.

Shakira has also become a leading advocate for universal education, speaking to world leaders on the topic and advocating policy change to governments around the world.

Renowned for her power and presence as a live performer, Shakira is gearing up for the release of a Spanish language album in the coming months, and a world tour in 2010.

Born in 2002 out of the cultural hotbed that is Cape Town South Africa, Freshlyground have become the musical voice of a nation’s adolescent democracy. Featuring members of different ethnicities from South Africa, Mozambique and Zimbabwe their diverse backgrounds have allowed them to weave a musical magic that is highly infectious and undeniably groovy.

Beginning with the release of Jika Jika in 2003 Freshlyground have carved out a massive following both in South Africa and around the world. Their music - a fusion of rock, jazz and Afro-pop - has proven time and time again to be a favourite amongst all audiences from young children to their grandparents. The skill and joy with which it is delivered have made them perpetual crossover favourites.

Nomvula, their multi-platinum 2004 release, broke new ground for South African pop acts. Its first single - Doo Be Doo - was the most played song in South Africa in 2005. With four hit singles following it, Nomvula propelled the band to heights few reach. It has taken them to stages and festivals around Asia, Europe, Africa and North America. With 2007’s Ma Cheri the band cemented their status as one of the finest acts to have ever come out of Southern Africa. They have won numerous awards including 4 South African Music Awards, 4 Metro FM Awards and an MTV Europe Music Award for "Best African Act" -a first for any SA musician.

Freshlyground have not forgotten their roots in the gritty reality of Sub-Saharan Africa where so many suffer. They have been supporters of the Desmond Tutu HIV Foundation since playing a fund raising concert for the Foundation in 2005.

Freshlyground are currently working on their fourth studio album, due for release in South Africa in May 2010. During the course of the year they will be touring extensively throughout South Africa as well as Europe, the US and Asia. Expect “the most important South African act of the 21st century” to continue winning the hearts of fans and packing venues all over the world.

Sony Music Entertainment is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Sony Corp., an Official Partner of the FIFA World Cup 2010 South Africa™.

About Sony Music Entertainment

Sony Music Entertainment is a global recorded music company with a roster of current artists that includes a broad array of both local artists and international superstars. The company boasts a vast catalog that comprises some of the most important recordings in history. It is home to premier record labels representing music from every genre, including American Recordings, Arista Nashville, Arista Records, Aware, Battery Records, Beach Street Records, Black Seal, BNA Records, Cinematic, Columbia Nashville, Columbia Records, Epic Records, Essential Records, Flicker Records, Fo-Yo Soul, GospoCentric, Hitz Committee Entertainment, J Records, Jive Records, LaFace Records, Legacy Recordings, Masterworks, Polo Grounds, RCA Records, RCA Nashville, RCA Red Seal, RCA Victor, Reunion Records, Slightly Dangerous, Sony Classical, Sony Music Latin, Star Time International, Verity Records, and Volcano Entertainment. Sony Music Entertainment is a wholly owned subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America.

About FIFA

The Fédération Internationale de Football Association is the world governing body of football, comprising 208 football associations grouped into six confederations. Based in Zurich, Switzerland, FIFA’s activities extend far beyond its broad spectrum of international competitions headed by the FIFA World Cup™. FIFA provides material, financial and promotional means to develop the game around the world, and offers underprivileged communities support through the Football for Hope movement. For the Game. For the World.

For more information on FIFA and its competitions, especially the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa™, please visit the official website at www.FIFA.com.

Press Contact:

Brian Garrity

Sony Music Entertainment