BRITNEY SPEARS TO MAKE SPECIAL APPEARANCE AT "THE 2004 BILLBOARD MUSIC AWARDS" AIRING LIVE WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 8, ON FOX

CAST OF "MADtv" TO HOST "BILLBOARD REQUEST LIVE" DURING THE SHOW Outkast's Big Boi, Kanye West, Maroon 5, Hoobastank, Lil Jon & The East Side Boyz, Petey Pablo, Three Days Grace, Ciara, Earth, Wind & Fire and Gloria Estefan to Appear

Britney Spears will appear on THE 2004 BILLBOARD MUSIC AWARDS, hosted by Ryan Seacrest and airing live from the MGM Grand Garden Arena Wednesday, Dec. 8 (8:00-10:00 PM ET Live/PT Tape Delayed) on FOX. Evanescence and Keith Urban, who during his performance will be joined by special guest Sheryl Crow, have been added to the list of chart-topping performers.

The cast of MADtv, FOX's Saturday late-night staple now in its 10th season, will provide the laughs with special show segments starring "Suchin Pak" (Bobby Lee) & "Lala" (Daniele Gaither) hosting the spoof "Billboard Request Live" throughout the broadcast. Celebrity spoofs will include appearances from "JaRule" (Jordan Peele), "Ludacris" (Keegan Michael Key), "Shaq" (Aries Spears), as well as "Anna Nicole Smith" (Stephnie Weir) explaining award show etiquette and "Clay Aiken" (Ron Pederson) sending out special holiday greetings.

Outkast's Big Boi, Kanye West, Maroon 5, Hoobastank, Lil Jon & The East Side Boyz, Petey Pablo, Three Days Grace, Ciara, Earth, Wind & Fire and Gloria Estefan will also make special appearances along with previously announced artists Paris Hilton, Nicole Richie, Tara Reid, Big & Rich, Gretchen Wilson, Macy Gray, Nick Lachey, Alicia Keys, Fantasia, Ashlee Simpson, Duran Duran and Chingy. Previously announced performers include Usher, Gwen Stefani, Green Day and Nelly.

Evanescence has taken the music world by storm with their fresh take on the rock genre. The band has dominated the modern rock and pop charts with their No. 1 singles "Bring Me To Life" and "My Immortal." Evanescence's debut album "Fallen" has sold over 13 million albums worldwide and has been in the top 100 of the Billboard charts for 90 weeks. Evanescence recently took home two Grammy Awards, including Best New Artist. The band just released "anywhere but home," a two-disc DVD/CD set featuring a live concert, one hour of behind-the-scenes footage, and their four music videos.

Keith Urban is the Country Music Association's reigning Male Vocalist of the Year. He's been electrifying audiences across the country since his debut release in 1999 and since then has sold millions of albums. His latest, "BE HERE," debuted at No. 1 on Billboard's Country Album Chart, No. 3 on Billboard's Top 200 Album Chart and went platinum in just six weeks. Urban recently celebrated his 5th No. 1 single, "Days Go By." He has had 8 consecutive Top 5 songs and he's performed to packed houses all over the world, making him Nashville's newest superstar.

Now in its 110th year, Billboard is the world's premier music industry publication and a diverse digital, events and brand-licensing platform. Billboard publishes the most trusted charts and offers unrivaled reporting about the latest music, video and digital entertainment issues and trends. Billboard is the flagship property for the Billboard Information Group, which also consists of Billboard.biz, Billboard.com, Billboard Chart Alert, Billboard Information Network (BIN), Billboard Directories, Billboard Licensing & Events and Billboard Radio Monitor. The Group is a unit of VNU Business Media, a worldwide media company that provides specialized publications, electronically delivered data, expositions and marketing services and is owned by VNU Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Netherlands-based VNU, an international publishing and information company.

MGM Grand, "The City of Entertainment" in Las Vegas, features 5,034 guest rooms and suites, a state-of-the-art gaming complex, world-class entertainment venues, signature restaurants owned by celebrity chefs and the $100-million Conference Center for meetings/conventions, all centrally located on the Las Vegas Strip. For room availability and information about the MGM Grand, call (800) 929-1111 or (702) 891-7777 or log onto www.mgmgrand.com.

Bob Bain returns for his ninth year as executive producer of the BILLBOARD MUSIC AWARDS. Greg Sills will serve as supervising producer. Paul Flattery and Michael Levitt are producers. Bruce Gowers is the show's director and Wylleen May is the executive in charge of production.