Cassie's "Me & U" Tops Out at #1

NEW YORK, NY -- August 08, 2006 -- With her smash debut single, "Me & U," riding the top of the charts, NextSelection/Bad Boy Entertainment recording artist Cassie hits stores today with her self-titled debut album.

"Me & U" tops out at #1 on this week's Billboard Rhythmic Airplay chart as well as #1 on R&R's CHR/Rhythmic chart. Last week, "Me & U" reached #1 on Billboard's Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, making Cassie the first female in nearly two years to hold the top spot on the chart. The single also ranks at #1 on Billboard's Hot 100 Airplay chart for a third week in a row.

Cassie Appearance, "LIVE with Regis and Kelly" August 14th.

"Me & U" was the #1 most played video on MTV last week, and the #3 most played on BET. Cassie will make appearances today on both "TRL" and BET's "106 & Park." Just last month, Cassie made her national television debut, performing "Me & U" on MTV's "TRL." The video hit #1 on "TRL's" countdown in June and repeatedly held the top spot. She also appeared on "Sucker Free on MTV" August 1st.

Born and raised in Connecticut, Cassie's chance meeting with NextSelection's Ryan Leslie led her to focus her creative energies on a series of demo recordings, including "Me & U." When the songs were posted on Cassie's newly created MySpace page, she became an online sensation, quickly drawing over 2 million visitors and sparking a label bidding war. To date, her site has seen nearly 8 million visitors, and Cassie is the first artist to break on such a large scale after being discovered by fans on MySpace. "CASSIE" was produced by Leslie, who also executive produced the album along with Bad Boy founder and CEO Diddy.

Just last week, Pepsi launched a radio spot featuring Cassie, which is airing in nearly 75 markets across the country. A performance on "LIVE with Regis and Kelly" is slated to air August 14th.

Contributed by (AP) wired reports and GNEXTINC.com staff