Live Aid was the brainchild of Bob Geldof, the singer of Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats. In 1984, Geldof travelled to Ethiopia after hearing news reports of an horrific famine that had already killed hundreds of thousands of Ethiopians and threatened to kill millions more. After returning to London, he called Britain and Ireland’s top pop artists together to record a single to benefit Ethiopian famine relief. ‘Do They Know it’s Christmas Time’ was written by Geldof and Ultravox singer Midge Ure, and performed by Band Aid, the ensemble that featured such artists as Boy George and Culture Club, Duran Duran and Phil Collins.
The song was the bestselling single in Britain to that date and raised nearly £8m for the charity (the equivalent of approx. £24m today).
Just in case you have never heard it, here is a link to the video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bjQzJAKxTrE
The song was also a huge hit in the US, and so American artists came together under the label USA for Africa to perform the song ‘We Are the World’, written by Michael Jackson and Lionel Ritchie. This single went to the top of the US and UK charts, eventually raising another $44m (approx. £100m by todays standard) for the cause.
Here is a link to the official ‘We Are the World’ video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9AjkUyX0rVw
Artists featured here included Bob Dylan, Stevie Wonder, Diana Ross and Harry Belafonte.
With the crisis continuing in Ethiopia, and the neighbouring Sudan also stricken with famine, Geldof proposed Live Aid, and ambitious global charity concert aimed at raising more funds and increasing awareness of the plight of many Africans. Organised in just 10 weeks, Live Aid was staged on Saturday, 13th July 1985. More than 75 acts performed in London and the US, including Elton John, Queen, Madonna, David Bowie, Neil Young, Tom Petty and Stevie Wonder. At Wembley Stadium in London Prince Charles and Princess Diana officially opened Live Aid. Continued at JFK Stadium in Philadelphia (where Joan Baez famously kicked it off by telling the crowd “this is your Woodstock, and it’s long overdue”) and at other arenas around the world. The 16hr ‘superconcert’ was globally linked by satellite to more than a billion viewers in 110 nations. In a triumph of technology and goodwill (everyone who worked on the concerts gave their time and their technology freely) the event raised more than £125m in famine relief for Africa. Over £381m by todays standard.