Tavis Smiley to Kick Off 'America I AM Across America' at ESSENCE Music Festival in New Orleans

LOS ANGELES, June 30, 2008 /PRNewswire via COMTEX News Network/ -- "America I AM Across America," a
mobile experience leading to the America I AM: The African American Imprint
museum exhibition, will make its debut July 4 at the ESSENCE Music Festival in
New Orleans, bringing the exhibition's inspirational message to the heart of
more than 40 communities across the country.

The museum exhibition will open in November celebrating 400 years of
African American contributions to the nation through artifacts, documents,
multimedia, photos and music. "America I AM Across America" will serve as a
traveling microcosm of the exhibition, a multi-sensory experience complete
with artifacts, text, video, music and a unique visitor interactive
opportunity. In a customized mobile recording booth, visitors will have the
opportunity to leave their own "imprints" as recorded video messages that will
travel with the exhibition. This living imprint will grow to become the
largest oral history project in U.S. history as the exhibit travels to cities
across the country.

As it criss-crosses the nation from July to November, "America I AM Across
America" will make appearances at festivals, African American museums,
landmarks, schools and other community gatherings in cities including New
Orleans, St. Louis, Atlanta, Jacksonville, Memphis, Denver, Los Angeles, San
Francisco, Phoenix, Washington, D.C., New York, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh,
Detroit, Cleveland, Chicago, and many more. The exhibition is made possible by
Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., which serves as its presenting sponsor, and also will
host the mobile tour in several cities. A full schedule will be available soon
at http://www.AmericaIAM.org.

"I've participated in the ESSENCE Music Festival numerous times, and I'm
always looking for any excuse to return to New Orleans! The ESSENCE Music
Festival is the perfect place to kick off this tour and I'm looking forward to
visiting other communities as well, as this tour travels across America," said
Tavis Smiley.

"Wal-Mart is proud to be part of such an innovative display of the trials
and triumphs of the African-American community," said Rosalind Brewer,
president, Southeast Division, Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. "It is important to
recognize African-American history as American history and as something that
should be celebrated throughout the year. And there is no better way to share
the enormous contributions of African-Americans with communities across the
country than through a nationwide traveling exhibit."

Developed in partnership with The Smiley Group, Inc., and organized by
Arts and Exhibitions International (AEI) and Cincinnati Museum Center, America
I AM: The African American Imprint is a four-year touring exhibition that will
tell the story of the nation's African people and their legacies through
objects, texts, religion, music, narration and media culled from every period
of the nation's history. Featuring more than 150 extraordinary artifacts, the
exhibit will present a historical continuum of pivotal moments in courage,
conviction and creativity that solidifies the undeniable imprint of African
Americans across the nation and around the world.

More details about the mobile tour and exhibition, including a gallery
walkthrough moderated by Tavis Smiley, are available at
http://www.AmericaIAM.org.

ABOUT The Smiley Group, Inc.

Founded in 1998 and based in Los Angeles, The Smiley Group, Inc., (TSG) is
a communications corporation dedicated to supporting human rights and related
empowerment issues. The mission of TSG is to achieve positive results through
advocacy and education on issues of concern to African Americans and other
people without substantial economic or social standing. TSG is the holding
company for Tavis Smiley Presents, Smiley Radio Properties, High Quality
Speakers Bureau, TS Media, and SmileyBooks. The Tavis Smiley Foundation is a
nonprofit organization that provides leadership development training for
youth. Tavis Smiley is the host of Tavis Smiley on PBS and The Tavis Smiley
Show from PRI and the author/editor of 11 books including the New York Times
best sellers Covenant with Black America, What I Know for Sure: My Story of
Growing up in America, and THE COVENANT In Action. For more information, visit
http://www.tavistalks.com.

ABOUT Arts and Exhibitions International (AEI)

Founded in 2003 by president John Norman and international vice president
Andres Numhauser, AEI produces the award-winning exhibition "Diana: A
Celebration" in association with the Althorp Estate in the United Kingdom, two
touring exhibitions dedicated to the treasures of King Tutankhamun and "Real
Pirates: The Untold Story of the Whydah from Slave Ship to Pirate Ship."
Norman and Numhauser have nearly 40 years combined experience in the
entertainment and exhibition business, working over the years on such projects
as "Titanic: The Artifact Exhibit" and "Saint Peter and the Vatican: The
Legacy of the Popes." The company has relationships with the most important
museums in the world and has presented traveling exhibitions on four
continents.

AEI is part of AEG Exhibitions, an affiliate division of AEG LIVE. AEG
LIVE is a collection of companies dedicated to all aspects of live
contemporary music performance and the live-entertainment division of Los
Angeles-based AEG, one of the leading sports and entertainment presenters in
the world. For more information, log onto http://www.artsandexhibitions.com.

ABOUT Cincinnati Museum Center

Cincinnati Museum Center at Union Terminal is home to the Cincinnati
History Museum, Duke Energy Children's Museum, the Museum of Natural History &
Science, the Robert D. Lindner Family OMNIMAX(R) Theater, and the Cincinnati
Historical Society Archives & Library. It is a nationally recognized
educational and research resource and one of the top cultural attractions in
the Midwest. With more than one million visitors each year, Museum Center is
the top cultural attraction in Cincinnati and the most visited museum complex
in the State of Ohio. Originally built in 1933 as the Union Terminal train
station, the building is a national historic landmark and was renovated and
reopened as Cincinnati Museum Center in 1990. For information, call
(513) 287-7000 or 1-800-733-2077 or visit http://www.cincymuseum.org.

ABOUT Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE: WMT)

Every week, millions of customers visit Wal-Mart Stores, Supercenters,
Neighborhood Markets, and Sam's Club locations across America or log on to its
online store at http://www.wal-mart.com. The company and its Foundation are
committed to a philosophy of giving back locally. Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT) is
proud to support the causes that are important to customers and associates
right in their own neighborhoods, and last year gave more than $270 million to
communities in the Unites States. To learn more, visit
http://www.walmartfacts.com, http://www.walmartstores.com, or
http://www.walmartfoundation.org.

SOURCE Arts and Exhibitions International

http://www.artsandexhibitions.com

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