During the early to mid-eighties, a widespread famine ravished the African country of Ethiopia. The worst famine to hit the country in a century killed hundreds of thousands but believe it was human rights abuses that brought on the famine harder and faster.
Around the world, many artists used their talents to bring awareness to the issues. Irish singer Bob Geldof released "Do They Know It's Christmas" in December 1984 and within twelve months of its release raise 8 million euro for famine relief. Another fundraiser headed by Geldof was the 1985 Live Aid concert featuring some of the world's favorite artists. The concert raised 145 million euro.
In January 1985, supergroup USA (United Support of Artists) for Africa came together to record "We Are the World". The single was written by Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie and produced by Quincy Jones. The single featured many of the top artists of the time including Bob Dylan, Stevie Wonder, Cyndi Lauper, Billy Joel, Kenny Loggins, Steve Perry, The Pointer Sisters, Diana Ross, Tina Turner, Bruce Springsteen, and many others. The song was officially released in March 1985, becoming a chart topper and raising $63 million.
25 years later, in February 2010, a new celebrity recording of 'We Are the World" was done to raise money for the earthquake victims in Haiti. In January 2010, a 7.0 magnitude earthquake struck Haiti, the country's most severe earthquake in 200 years. Over 200,000 citizens were confirmed dead and another 300,000 were injured. 75 artists participated in the new recording and the song was recorded in the same studio as the original. The new recording revised some lyrics and featured a rap segment pertaining to Haiti. Janet Jackson alongside her late brother, Michael, on a track which was archived from the original recording.
This was an amazing way for the world to come together for a specific cause. This was an amazing way for countries around the world to show their support for Africa and Ethiopia especially. It was a reminder to those citizens that they were not alone. It showed the strength of the human race. It was and still is a very powerful song that can be used in times of tragedy around the world. Recreating the song 25 years later for another devastating tragedy just shows how much we have continued to show our support for others. These kinds of acts shed some light even in the darkest of times. Our love for others, for strangers, is an amazing thing. We might not always be able to agree on the way things should be done, but we can certainly agree on how we show others that we care and that they are in our hearts, our thoughts, and our prayers.
