The Eighties in America - Salem Press (2009)

When a devastating famine struck Ethiopia in the
fall of 1984, Americans began exploring ways to con-
tribute to the relief efforts. Singer Harry Belafonte,
known for his hit songs and movies from the 1950’s
and early 1960’s and his civil rights activism, ap-
proached his manager, music producer Ken Kragen,
about organizing a benefit concert. In November of
1984, a group of Britain’s most famous pop musi-
cians had assembled under the name Band Aid
and recorded a song, “Do They Know It’s Christ-
mas?” that had raced to the top of the music charts
and earned millions for African relief. As a result,
Belafonte and Kragen, along with Lionel Richie (an-
other of Kragen’s clients) and Michael Jackson, two
of pop music’s most successful artists and compos-
ers, began to organize a similar effort with American
musicians.
The group recruited Quincy Jones, a success-
ful producer whose work with Jackson had helped
resurrect the singer’s career, to produce the effort,
and Jackson and Ritchie composed a new song for
the occasion. Instrumental tracks were recorded

and mailed to a broad spectrum of artists,

and on January 28, 1985, a group of forty-

five performers gathered atA&MStudios

in Hollywood following the American Mu-

sic Awards to record “We Are the World.”

Among the forty-five singers assembled in

the studios were Belafonte, comedian Dan

Ackroyd, Band Aid producer Bob Geldof,

and band members and family members

of the twenty-one artists for whose brief

solo performances the song came to be

known. These included many who were

among pop music’s biggest stars of the

1980’s—Richie, Stevie Wonder, Paul Si-

mon, Kenny Rogers, James Ingram, Tina

Turner, Billy Joel, Michael Jackson, Diana

Ross, Dionne Warwick, Willie Nelson, Al

Jarreau, Bruce Springsteen, Kenny Log-

gins, Steve Perry, Daryl Hall, Huey Lewis,

Cyndi Lauper, Kim Carnes, Bob Dylan,

and Ray Charles. When the record was re-

leased in March of 1985, the group was

identified on the label as USA for Africa.

Impact The song became an immediate

hit, reaching number one on the music

charts in just three weeks, and it eventually

sold more than seven million copies over

the next seven years. It won the 1985 Grammy

awards for Song of the Year, Record of the Year, and

Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group. The foun-

dation created by Kragen to administer and distrib-

ute the sixty-four million dollars raised in the effort,

United Support of Artists for Africa, continued to

operate and sponsored later efforts on behalf of

America’s music industry to address emergency and

long-term development needs in Africa.

Further Reading

Berger, Gilda.USA for Africa: Rock Aid in the Eighties.

London: Franklin Watts, 1987.

Garofalo, Reebee, ed.Rockin’ the Boat: Mass Music

and Mass Movements. Cambridge, Mass.: South

End Press, 1991.

Devon Boan

See also Africa and the United States; Comic Re-

lief; Farm Aid; Jackson, Michael; Journey; Lauper,

Cyndi; Live Aid; Music; Music videos; Pop music;

Richie, Lionel; Springsteen, Bruce.

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USA for Africa The Eighties in America

The following performers participated in USA for Africa, record-

ing the song “We Are the World”:

Dan Ackroyd

Harry Belafonte

Lindsey Buckingham

Kim Carnes

Ray Charles

Bob Dylan

Sheila E.

Bob Geldof

Daryl Hall

James Ingram

Jackie Jackson

LaToya Jackson

Marlon Jackson

Michael Jackson

Randy Jackson

Tito Jackson

Al Jarreau

Waylon Jennings

Billy Joel

Lauper, Cyndi

Huey Lewis and the News

Kenny Loggins

Bette Midler

Willie Nelson

John Oates

Jeffrey Osborne

Steve Perry

The Pointer Sisters

Lionel Richie

Smokey Robinson

Kenny Rogers

Diana Ross

Paul Simon

Bruce Springsteen

Tina Turner

Dionne Warwick

Stevie Wonder

A Stellar Ensemble