PEPSI® PARTNERS WITH BILLBOARD AND MRC LIVE & ALTERNATIVE TO DROP FIRST-EVER LIVE NFT MINTING EXPERIENCE DURING THE “2022 BILLBOARD MUSIC AWARDS”

The Pepsi Mic Drop x Billboard Music Awards “Winners’ Club” NFT Collection Gives Fans The Chance To Score Free NFTs Celebrating Each Award Throughout the Show, Plus the Brand-New “Pepsi Mic Drop Moment”

The Awards and Live Minting Kick Off Sunday, May 15 at 8 P.M. ET / 5 P.M. PT on NBC

Purchase, N.Y., May 11, 2022 — Today, Pepsi announced a first-ever innovative second screen NFT experience in partnership with Billboard and MRC Live & Alternative to provide a new way for fans to engage with live entertainment. The groundbreaking Pepsi Mic Drop x Billboard Music Awards “Winners’ Club” NFT Collection, available through the Billboard ChartStars platform, is a limited-edition digital collectible collection created for the “2022 Billboard Music Awards” (BBMAs) that gives fans the opportunity to claim NFTs in real-time as awards are announced throughout the show. Additionally, the telecast will feature a brand-new “Pepsi Mic Drop Moment” honoring one artist or group that has earned unique success on the Billboard Hot 100,continuing the Pepsi brand’s rich legacy in working with and supporting musicians.

Score a Free “Winners’ Club” NFT DURING the Show

The Pepsi Mic Drop x Billboard Music Awards “Winners’ Club” NFT Collection will mark the first time music fans will be able to take home a piece of the Billboard Music Awards via Billboard ChartStars, built on a leading eco-friendly Flow blockchain. As each award is announced live during the show, a custom digital collectible will unlock in real time, available for free minting for only 20 minutes, rewarding hardcore Billboard Music fans with epic, one of a kind NFTs celebrating this year’s awards. Fans can get in on the action and learn how to redeem the “Winners’ Club” NFT Collection all night long by following Pepsi, Billboard and BBMAs on all social channels and visiting BillboardChartStars.com.

The First-Ever “Pepsi Mic Drop Moment”

The exclusive NFTs aren’t limited to the existing Billboard Music Award categories, though. One additional exclusive drop will feature the Pepsi Mic Drop Moment, a brand-new honor from Pepsi celebrating one artist or group who has achieved huge success on the Billboard charts this year. While the honor is presented live during the telecast, fans can look out for the QR code driving them to the Billboard ChartStars drop to redeem the exclusive “Pepsi Mic Drop Moment” collectible featuring the honoree for a limited time during the show. QR CODE is a registered trademark of Denso Wave Incorporated.

“Pepsi has a deep-rooted heritage in music, so our partnership with Billboard to create the Pepsi Mic Drop x Billboard Music Awards ‘Winners’ Club’ NFT Collection is a great reflection of our ongoing desire to connect with fans that share our unapologetic love of music,” said Todd Kaplan, Chief Marketing Officer, Pepsi. “This collection is built to be broadly accessible to music fans who want to capture a piece of history from this year’s 2022 Billboard Music Awards. It’s free to mint and easy to access through a never-been-done live minting experience and shows our commitment to the Pepsi Mic Drop platform and desire to create new experiences for music fans everywhere.

“For the first time, music fans will have the opportunity to be forever linked to their favorite artists, by sharing ownership of a moment in time tied to the 2022 Billboard Music Awards,” said Mike Van, EVP, Head of Global Brand Partnerships, Billboard. “We could not have planned a better time to launch ChartStars nor could we have asked for a better partner than Pepsi to celebrate exceptional artist achievements on the Billboard charts.”

“Every year the Billboard Music Awards fuels the cultural conversation through the power of live event television and is one of the biggest stages for artists to celebrate their charting achievements, and we’re so proud to integrate Pepsi into our show for a special Pepsi Mic Drop Moment that can’t be missed and for fans to have the opportunity to own a piece of it,” said Adam Stotsky, President, MRC Live & Alternative.

The Pepsi Mic Drop x Billboard Music Awards “Winners’ Club” NFT Collection is the latest in the brand’s sustained commitment to Web3 and the innovative space of Non-Fungible-Tokens (NFTs). Last year, the brand launched the Pepsi Mic Drop genesis NFT collection, one-of-a-kind generative style NFTs celebrating the brand’s legacy in music, and recently partnered with Mary J. Blige’s “Strength of a Woman Festival & Summit” on an exclusive NFT drop for attendees, showcasing trailblazing women in web3, music, entertainment, food, business and more.

As previously announced, the launch of Billboard ChartStars marks Billboard’s first scalable NFT-based collection of artist-focused digital artwork that commemorates achievements and milestones on the Billboard Charts. Powered by Unblocked,Billboard’s NFT technology partner, Billboard ChartStars will run on the Flow Blockchain platform, which is more environmentally friendly compared to most other mainstream blockchain technology. For more information, visit BillboardChartStars.com

The “2022 Billboard Music Awards” is produced by MRC Live & Alternative. Robert Deaton and Sean “Diddy” Combs are executive producers. The “2022 Billboard Music Awards” is sponsored by Security Benefit, Xfinity, and Pepsi. For more information, visit BillboardMusicAwards.com

The 2022 Billboard Music Awards, hosted by music mogul and global superstar Sean “Diddy'' Combs, will broadcast live coast-to-coast from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on Sunday, May 15 at 8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT on NBC and will stream live on Peacock. The superstar lineup includes Becky G, Burna Boy, Ed Sheeran, Elle King & Miranda Lambert, Florence + The Machine, Latto, Maxwell, Megan Thee Stallion, Morgan Wallen, Rauw Alejandro, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Travis Scott and Silk Sonic.  This year’s Billboard Music Awards Icon Award recipient is Mary J. Blige.

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About PepsiCo

PepsiCo products are enjoyed by consumers more than one billion times a day in more than 200 countries and territories around the world. PepsiCo generated more than $79 billion in net revenue in 2021, driven by a complementary beverages and convenient foods portfolio that includes Lay's, Doritos, Cheetos, Gatorade, Pepsi-Cola, Mountain Dew, Quaker, and SodaStream. PepsiCo's product portfolio includes a wide range of enjoyable foods and beverages, including many iconic brands that generate more than $1 billion each in estimated annual retail sales.

Guiding PepsiCo is our vision to Be the Global Leader in Beverages and Convenient Foods by Winning with PepsiCo Positive (pep+). pep+ is our strategic end-to-end transformation that puts sustainability at the center of how we will create value and growth by operating within planetary boundaries and inspiring positive change for planet and people. For more information, visit www.pepsico.com.

About MRC Live & Alternative

MRC Live & Alternative, a division of global entertainment company MRC, is the world's largest producer and proprietor of televised live event entertainment programming with the "Academy of Country Music Awards," "American Music Awards," "Billboard Music Awards," "Golden Globe Awards," "Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve with Ryan Seacrest," “So You Think You Can Dance,” and the “Streamy Awards.” MRC Live & Alternative owns one of the world's most extensive and unique entertainment archive libraries with more than 60 years of award-winning shows, historic programs, specials, performances and legendary programming. For more information please visit: www.mrcentertainment.com.

About Billboard 
Billboard is a global music media brand, with a renowned authority among artists, fans, and the industry at large. Billboard powers the ultimate global music destination and magazine, featuring unrivaled reporting on music news, issues, trends, and the industry’s definitive charts, encompassing the most complete and well-respected database of charts across all music genres. Billboard also produces elite conferences and events which regularly convene influential industry stakeholders and consumers around important conversations.

About Unblocked

Unblocked is transforming the future of music and entertainment with bespoke NFT experiences. By linking brands and artists with their biggest fans and supporters, Unblocked is able to build new connections both online and in the real world. As part of the Flow blockchain, Unblocked is also committed to maintaining a sustainable and environmentally friendly ecosystem in Web3. With steadily growing interest in digital spaces, Unblocked seeks to create long-term value for brands of all sizes by encouraging community development and utilizing the power of NFTs.