Almanac: "We Are the World"
And now a page from our "Sunday Morning" Almanac: January 28th, 1985, 33 years ago today … the day more than 40 of the music world's greatest stars gathered in a Los Angeles studio to record the song "We Are the World."
Written by Lionel Richie and Michael Jackson, and produced by Quincy Jones, the song was a fundraiser for the relief group USA for Africa.
The artists were told, "Check your egos at the door." And did they ever.
Twenty-one of them each got a turn singing a solo line, while more than 20 others made up the chorus.
More than nine million copies of the song have been sold or downloaded. It won four Grammys, including Song of the Year and Record of the Year.
And most important: USA for Africa says the song has generated more than $65 million for humanitarian relief.
To watch the music video of "We Are the World" click on the player below.
For more info:
- USA for Africa
"We Are the World" (USA for Africa), available on Vinyl (Amazon), Digital Download (Amazon, iTunes) and Streaming (Apple Music, Spotify)