New York-based Tru Criminal Records is proud to announce a new partnership with New Line Records and their parent company New Line Cinema (a division of AOL Time Warner). The first offering from the new partnership will be a compilation highlighting talent from Tru Criminal's ever expanding roster in addition to showcasing popular urban producers such as The Alchemist, Large Professor and Buckwild. Titled "The Anti-Backpack Movement," the record will feature performances by 50 Cent, The Mafia (Junior Mafia), Nature, and FT and 151 Proof - two artists whose solo albums will also be released as part of the new partnership. Lee "Skill" Resnick, CEO of Tru Criminal Records explains the goal of the partnership, "Both Tru Criminal and New Line have the same vision. We both agree that a tremendous opportunity exists to break new rap artists. There's a big void between what's happening on the streets and what's in the stores. Our goal is to introduce a whole new roster to the public consciousness." New Line's Jason Linn agrees, "This is a fantastic chance for us to become involved with the underground urban music community. Lee has his ear firmly planted on the street and we're excited by the chance to take his talented roster and expose them to a wider audience through our films, television opportunities and soundtracks."

New Line Records was formed in 1999 as part of New Line Cinema's efforts to expand their ability to market their theatrical releases. Originally devoted to soundtracks and score albums for New Line feature films, the label was expanded in early 2000 as a way to develop artists through film and television exposure. Distributed through Alternative Distribution Alliance, New Line Records was recently awarded their first Gold certification for the soundtrack to "Love & Basketball." New Line Cinema is the home to such popular franchise hits as Austin Powers, Lord of the Rings, Rush Hour, and the Friday series.

Tru Criminal Records entered the east coast rap scene in 1997 with several successful vinyl releases. As sales of their vinyl singles soared, Tru Criminal gained significant notoriety in New York garnering attention from the New York Times, Billboard and MTV.

In addition to "The Anti-Backpack Movement," Tru Criminal and New Line have announced two albums that will be in stores before the close of 2002. Next from the partnership will be the debut of New York native "FT" who was named a "Y2K MC to Watch" by Source Magazine. Featuring production from Just Blaze, Fred Wreck, Yogi and others, FT's album "The Cure" will be in-stores this summer. However, it's not the first that we've heard from FT who has already been featured on the major motion picture soundtracks from Rush Hour 2, Bones, and the new Ice Cube and Mike Epps comedy "All About the Benjamins" which hit stores March 5, 2002. Goliath Artists Inc. who also manages Eminem, Xzibit and Cypress Hill recently signed a management deal to represent FT. Rounding out this year's releases will be Brooklyn's own 151 Proof. Born of the same soil as Jay-Z and Notorious B.I.G., 151 Proof will appear on the "Anti-Backpack Movement" compilation before releasing his solo debut this fall.