Sweden's Sofia Talvik Added To Lollapalooza Line-Up Via FameCast.com

FameCast - the world's premier artist discovery engine that collects, ranks and serves up the best emerging talent to fans through a unique blend of online competitions and social community -- is kicking its already-lucrative prize offerings up a notch with the announcement that Lollapalooza organizers have hand-picked FameCast finalist Sofia Talvik for its 2008 lineup.

Swedish-born pop singer-songwriter Talvik will join headliners Radiohead, Rage Against the Machine, Nine Inch Nails, Kanye West, Wilco, the Raconteurs and more of the world's hottest bands in performing August 1-3 at Chicago's Grant Park. Talvik is the latest artist to be discovered through FameCast, and the Swedish-born artist's inclusion in one of the world's most esteemed concert events is a sneak preview of the opportunities FameCast will award through an enhanced, new contest format launching April 15.

"This is an unbelievable dream come true," said Talvik. "I am so excited to be a part of Lollapalooza, along with some of my biggest heroes and favorite bands, in front of tens of thousands of screaming fans. This is one of the biggest opportunities I've ever had in my career, and I have FameCast to thank!"

Talvik, 28, has been steadily building a following from her days as a struggling artist in Stockholm to her recent breakout success across Europe and the U.S., with her unique storytelling prowess and melodic acoustic guitar backed by eclectic, minimalist instrumentation such as cellos, double bass and soft percussion. Last year, the singer released her second album, Street of Dreams, which was written and produced entirely by Talvik herself, and released on her own Makaki Music label. The album's first single, "It's Just Love," is a duet with one of the UK's top indie icons of the last 15 years, legendary guitarist Bernard Butler of the band Suede.

FameCast's online platform continues to not only connect independent artists directly with new fans worldwide daily, but provides entertainment business tastemakers access to tomorrow's stars right from their laptops today. Competing artists enjoy instant critiques from FameCast's panel of industry experts, a who's-who of the entertainment community including Grammy and Emmy-winners, A-list talent managers, as well as writers for such respected publications as Billboard, Los Angeles Times, the Source and more.

FameCast regularly connects artists with career-building opportunities like performance slots at the Big State Festival, Flat Rock Music Festival and LA Shorts Festival; gear from Open Labs and Guitar Center; featured placement in Billboard and other industry publications, and mentor sessions with the managers and producers behind artists such as U2, David Bowie, Nine Inch Nails, Common, Lee-Anne Rimes and Carrie Underwood.

FameCast will unveil details of a new contest format next week. One that promises to continue to deliver severing up tomorrow's stars today as well as offering contestants an even greater amount of participating artists access to its lucrative opportunities for cash prizes, global exposure and industry opportunities.