THE 2018 RADIO DISNEY MUSIC AWARDS MOVES TO HOLLYWOOD WITH MUSIC'S BIGGEST EVENT FOR FAMILIES SET TO TAKE PLACE AT THE DOLBY THEATRE ON FRIDAY, JUNE 22, 2018

- Voting Begins and Tickets Go on Sale on Friday, April 27 -

The 2018 Radio Disney Music Awards (RDMA), music's biggest event for families, will take place on FRIDAY, JUNE 22, at the Dolby Theatre(R) at Hollywood & Highland Center(R) in Hollywood, California. A special telecast of the sixth annual show, "2018 Radio Disney Music Awards," will be presented on SATURDAY, JUNE 23 on Disney Channel, as well as multiple Disney-branded platforms including Radio Disney, the Radio Disney app, the DisneyNOW app and Disney.com/RDMA. The telecast will also air internationally, including in Canada, Spain, India and select countries in Latin America.

Through its commitment to music talent across pop and country genres, Radio Disney has become known as a platform that presents unique opportunities for both rising young artists and big-name stars seeking to reach new audiences and gain new fans. Through the annual RDMA show - programmed multiple times on linear and digital platforms - artists can further reach and build new audiences.

Fans around the world will be invited to vote beginning Friday, April 27 to determine which artists will win the Radio Disney "ARDY" statuette. Tickets to attend the performance-filled awards show go on sale on Friday, April 27 at Ticketmaster.com.

New and returning clients from the automotive, toy, food and entertainment categories are set to sponsor the 2018 RDMA. The uniquely positioned event, with a wide reach across multiple media channels, will be sponsored by Aquabeads(R), Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid, Goldfish(R) crackers, KRAFT(R) Macaroni and Cheese Shapes, Nintendo's Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze video game on the Nintendo Switch, and The Walt Disney Studios.

Den of Thieves, the production company that has delivered some of the biggest moments in live event television, returns for the fourth consecutive year to produce the 2018 RDMA, with Jesse Ignjatovic and Evan Prager returning as the show's executive producers. Den of Thieves' credits include multiple awards shows and specials including "MTV Video Music Awards," "iHeartRadio Music Awards," "MTV Movie Awards," ABC's "The Gong Show" revival, "The Wonderful World of Disney: Disneyland 60," "CMT Music Awards" and the multi-network broadcast of "Hand in Hand: A Benefit for Hurricane Relief."

The 2017 RDMA featured memorable musical performances and appearances including a surprise tribute performance for Britney Spears, the recipient of the first-ever RDMA Icon Award, by her sister Jamie Lynn Spears, Hailee Steinfeld, Kelsea Ballerini and Sofia Carson. Other standout moments included performances by Alessia Cara, who has since won the Grammy(R) Award for Best New Artist; Kelsea Ballerini, who went on to receive a CMA Award nomination for Female Vocalist of the Year; Julia Michaels, marking her first awards show performance of her chart-topping single "Issues" and since then was nominated for two Grammy Awards (Song of the Year and Best New Artist); and other fan-favorites including Sabrina Carpenter, Hailee Steinfeld and Grace VanderWaal; a "Moana" musical collaboration by Jordan Fisher, Alessia Cara, Auli'i Cravalho and Tally; and Nick Jonas receiving the RDMA Hero Award for his philanthropic work with Beyond Type 1.

In 2017, Justin Bieber, Kelsea Ballerini and Alessia Cara were among the top RDMA winners. Over 283 million votes from around the world were tallied last year, its highest numbers yet across six polling platforms: the Radio Disney app, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Google One Box and Musical.ly. Social engagement was robust leading up to the show, amassing billions of impressions across prominent platforms including Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, the Radio Disney app and RadioDisney.com.