Africa Version of We Are the World to push the fight against Ebola and say No to Xenophobia.
Launched recently at the 2015 MTN Radio Awards in Johannesburg on 18 April, the song features some 180 artists from across the continent, performing under the name Africa Against Ebola and Xenophobia. The project showcases the beauty made possible when people from Africa work together.
In fact 80-90% of the artists are Nigerian and SouthAfrican, then it’s not really PanAfrican…  And as far as I could tell not one artist from a francophone country (Well, might be 1 guy from Cameroon…).
The original song was written in 1985 by Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie, produced by Quincy Jones and recorded by a group of prominent artists under the name USA For Africa to raise international awareness and funds for the famine in Ethiopia. It was a number one hit around the world, won four Grammys in 1986 and is believed to be one of about 30 singles to have ever sold over 10 million copies worldwide. In February 2010, the song was recorded again as âWe Are The World 25 For Haitiâ, following the catastrophic earthquake in Haiti that claimed over 230 000 lives and left over a million people homeless.