CARSON, CA (Saturday, November 19, 2005) - The Battle of the High School Marching Bands, presented by The Home Depot Center Charitable Foundation, crowned Louisiana Leadership Institute High School Marching Band from Baton Rouge, Louisiana 2005 Champions.  Frank Ballou High School (Washington, D.C.) took second place and Carroll High School (Monroe, LA) came in third in front of 9,269 at The Home Depot Center in Carson, California on the campus of California State University, Dominguez Hills.

Louisiana Leadership Institute High School won $10,000 to purchase new instruments or uniforms for their school, and was presented with a one-of-a-kind first place trophy by renowned sports artist Ernie Barnes, using his signature painting \"Homecoming,\" which was featured in 20th Century Fox's Drumline. All proceeds from tonight's event go to The Home Depot Center Charitable Foundation and The VH1 Save the Music Foundation. \"This year's show offered tough competition and maximum entertainment to The Home Depot Center guests,\" says Tamala Lewis, Home Depot Center Charitable Foundation director and event co-producer.  \"The most exciting part of our show is that all proceeds go to charity, through The Home Depot Center Charitable Foundation and The VH1 Save the Music Foundation to keep music in our schools.\"

In a final field of six marching bands from local and national schools, Louisiana Leadership Institute High School was named No. 1 by a panel of celebrity guest judges, including Sheila E. and Lalah Hathaway.  The bands battled it out on the stadium field \"southern show style\" at The Home Depot Center.  Last year's champion was Redan High School from Stone Mountain, Georgia.

Other schools who competed, in addition to the final three, included Alain Locke High School (Los Angeles, CA), Crenshaw High School (Los Angeles, CA) and Inglewood High School (Inglewood, CA).  All six participating high schools will march tomorrow in the Disneyland 50th Anniversary Parade of Dreams at Disneyland in Anaheim, California.  

The six finalists were selected out of a pool of 106 applicants.  To apply, schools were required to submit a VHS tape or DVD with one video and audio performance by their high school marching band. 

In addition to the marching band competition, the show was kicked off by the Reverend Jesse Louis Jackson, Sr. and included special performances by today's popular hip hop, rap and R&B artists Chingy, Chris Brown and O.N.E.

Last year, the event raised $40,000.  All proceeds benefit The Home Depot Center Charitable Foundation and the VH1 Save The Music Foundation.  Gold sponsors for this year's event were Comcast, Disneyland and 100.3 The Beat. 

Since VH1 Save The Music was created in 1997, they have given nearly $30 million worth of instruments to more than 500,000 children.  VH1 Save The Music's many honors include the Governor's Award (a special Emmy Award), the George Foster Peabody Award for broadcast and cable excellence, and many Beacon Awards.

The Home Depot Center Charitable Foundation was established to provide financial and in-kind support for educational, recreational and social service programs which improve the lives of young people in the Greater Southern California region.  The Home Depot Center Charitable Foundation has given more than $400,000 to youth organizations since The Home Depot Center opened in 2003.

2005 Battle of the High School Marching Bands Final Scores

About The Home Depot Center

The Home Depot Center is southern California's new home of world-class competition and training facilities for amateur, Olympic, collegiate and professional athletes.  The $150 million privately financed facility was developed and is operated by AEG on a 125-acre site on the campus of California State University, Dominguez (CSUDH) Hills in Carson, California.  The Home Depot Center features an 8,000-seat tennis stadium, a 27,000-seat stadium for soccer, rugby, lacrosse & other athletic competitions and outdoor concerts, an 8,000-seat facility for track & field, the ADT Event Center (a 2,450-seat indoor velodrome for cycling) and other facilities for softball, baseball, beach volleyball, basketball and other sports. Named an Official U.S. Olympic Training Site, The Home Depot Center is home of the United States Tennis Association (USTA) USA Tennis High Performance Training Center as well as the national team training headquarters for the U.S. Soccer Federation (USSF).  The complex is also the home of The David Beckham Academy for youth soccer and the nationally recognized Athletes' Performance training center for elite and professional athletes.  The Home Depot Center has additionally been designated official training sites for USA Cycling, USA Track & Field and the USTA.

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Contact:
Alison Groendal
(310) 630-2032
agroendal@homedepotcenter.com