San Francisco, CA – 12 May 2009 – The San Francisco Pride Celebration Committee announced today that Dustin Lance Black, the Academy Award-winning writer of Milk, will appear in the upcoming ad campaign for the 2009 Pride Celebration & Parade.

Black gave the Pride Celebration Committee permission to use his image and a quote in this year’s marketing campaign, which will feature diverse images of Pride attendees, including Black.  

Executive Director Lindsey Jones stated, “Our campaign this year is rooted in the populism of the event theme, ‘In Order to Form a More Perfect Union…,’ which is why we have put the people of Pride front and center in this year’s campaign.  One of the most integral and powerful aspects of being at San Francisco Pride is witnessing the diversity of the people around you.  As a community we are proud of who we are, and this campaign puts our pride on display.  We are absolutely thrilled that Dustin Lance Black has lent his support to this campaign.”

Dustin Lance Black was a Celebrity Grand Marshal at the 2008 San Francisco Pride Celebration & Parade along with Cleve Jones, Milk producers Bruce Cohen and Dan Jinks, and director Gus Van Sant.  Stuart Milk, the nephew of the late Harvey Milk, also participated as a Celebrity Grand Marshal in the 2008 event.

San Francisco Pride also announced that Solange Knowles, The Cliks, and Korean pop sensation BoA will be performing on this year’s Main Stage.

About Solange Knowles
Perceptions are not always based in reality, and nobody knows this better than Solange Knowles.  With the release of her sophomore album,   SoL-AngeL  and the Hadley St. Dreams (Music World Entertainment/Geffen Records), Solange has written, “I am ready to have every listener step into my very personal field of dreams, minus the preconceived notions.”  Solange’s life as a performer started very early on.  Classically trained in ballet, jazz, tap and modern dance, she stepped in, unexpectedly, as a back up dancer with Destiny's Child.  

At the age of 16, she released her debut album, Solo Star, on Columbia Records. This album was a creative  turning point for Solange; a melting pot of different genres and sounds including  R&B, Reggae, Alternative, and even Country.  Her latest work for Destiny’s Child includes co-writing Beyonce's "Get Me Bodied" and "Upgrade You"  off of her B’Day album, Kelly’s "Love" off of her second album, Ms. Kelly and Michelle Williams' latest first single "We Break the Dawn" off of her forthcoming CD, Unexpected, before getting back to making her own music for her second project, SoL-AngeL & the Hadley St. Dreams.

Solange describes the sound of her record, “I would like to think that it is as if The Supremes, The Marvelettes, Dusty Springfield and Minnie Riperton were to make the music they did in the 60's and 70's now with a modern touch.”   
 

About The Cliks
Composed from a place of deep turmoil, lead singer Lucas Silveira began work on The Cliks’ second album following the highly successful tours behind sophomore release Snakehouse. The band’s incendiary live shows became the calling card by which they were known, and in short order, musical heroes Ian Astbury of the Cult and Cyndi Lauper hand-picked the band for their respective tours. Late-night bookers were listening too, and soon the Cliks found themselves on The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson, not to mention a very special performance Lucas did with Cyndi Lauper on Jimmy Kimmel Live! The band picked up momentum and fans when Logo awarded them the NewNowNext Artist On the Brink Award which ultimately led to an appearance on teenybopper mecca TRL to discuss their plans for the future.

Though critically lauded and publicly adored, Silveira returned road weary and emotionally shattered. Having spent 400 days on the road touring behind Snakehouse, Silveira was eager to return home, but home wasn’t the reprieve he’d hoped it would be.

With their rise out of the ashes comes new sonic territory for the band. Their most adventurous album to date finds the band teamed with producer-engineer Sylvia Massy (Red Hot Chili Peppers, Tool) at her Weed, California based Radio Star Studios. “She’s my kind of producer,” says drummer Morgan Doctor. “She doesn’t come from a singer-songwriter background, but an engineering background, so she’s more about creating sound and texture in the studio.” Massy’s studio -- filled with enough amps, effects and instruments to make it a veritable playground for musicians – served as the band’s bedrock to create the full range of the album’s sounds and correlating emotions, from the jagged rock of its denials to the soulful balladry of its admissions.

About BoA
BoA, a #1-charting pop star from Asia who boasts nearly 20 million albums sold world wide, is gearing up to launch her brand new single, “I Did It For Love” with top US hit-maker, Sean Garrett.  Recorded in Atlanta, GA with Grammy nominated Garrett, who is responsible for #1 hits by Beyonce, Fergie, Nelly, Ciara and more, “I Did It For Love” will be the launching pad leading into her self-titled album, “BoA,” set to arrive in stores on March 17, 2009 on SM Entertainment.  The album will release worldwide on that day in the US, Korea and Japan.  A video for the single was shot in Los Angeles last week by famed video director Joseph Kahn.    BoA, now 22, has enjoyed an extremely successful nine-year career in Asia where she has released eleven #1 albums.   

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