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“We Are
The World” Comparison
Written by: luminoUS, Editor at Large
25 years ago, Michael Jackson teamed up with Lionel Richie and penned the song “We Are The World” as a charity single for “USA for Africa”. Harry Belafonte spawned the idea from Band Aid’s UK “Do They Know It’s Christmas?” project and decided to pull together a project for African famine relief. Fundraiser Ken Kragen and Harry Belafonte actually contacted various musicians before the song was written. Quincy Jones and Michael Omartian were pulled in as the producers for the album.
Quincy Jones and Lionel Richie originally planned to record a 25th Anniversary version this past January, but with the January 12, 2010 7.0 earthquake in Haiti, the recording was pushed to February. With changes being made, RedOne and Wyclef Jean produced the new version. Ricky Minor served as the musical director.
After hearing various media buzz about the remake, I couldn’t wait to watch the new version. With the biggest media feedback focusing on Lil Wayne covering Bob Dylan’s part, I sat patiently thru the opening ceremonies of the 2010 Winter Olympics. Okay. I honestly got a little bored and started working around the house with the TV on full blast so that I could hear the song once it started. While standing in the kitchen talking to a houseguest, I heard singing and I raced to my sofa so that I could witness yet another breaking moment in history. I took my seat just as Lil Wayne graced the scene and I watched in silence feeling that the song was crowded and rushed. I felt very disappointed after it was all said and done and held my mouth at the thought of using auto-tune. I closed my mouth and kept my ears open long enough to hear that what was aired was actually not the full video and that it would be available for download.
I began to appreciate the progression that music has made in the past 25 years. Here it was they put “rap” in the middle of a charity benefit song and it fit appropriately. I also had to recant my feelings towards the use of auto-tune.
I decided to give it another chance. I mean, me passing judgment on the entire song without listening to it all the way thru was like the old adage of judging a book by it’s cover, so I downloaded the video from iTunes and watched from start to finish. Finally, the goose bumps and chills that I was waiting for arrived with my hairs standing on end during the rap segment at the end of the song. Once the video ended, I immediately went to YouTube to watch the original. Then, I watched the remake once again and noticed the vast similarities and it’s differencing. I was forced to change my Facebook status to the following: “‘luminoUS’ has downloaded the "We Are The World" remake video from iTunes and after watching it in it's entirety she has to admit that she likes it. In comparison to the original, one can see the evolution of musical culture and she appreciates every aspect of today's version. Yelè Ayiti!”
I woke up singing “We Are The World” and what started out as a small curiosity as to which artist replaced whom lead to a full-blast search and comparison. I figured if I was curious, I’m sure someone else is as well and I decided to pen this editorial. I searched for both videos on YouTube and watched them side-by-side, jotting down the solo artists. Although some of the lyrics and musical arrangements were changed, I feel like the new artists where chosen accurately based on the character and body of the voices of the original artists. With that being said, Lil Wayne meshed perfectly with Bob Dylan as Wyclef matched the shakiness of Springsteen.
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2010
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Quincy Jones and Lionel Richie did a wonderful job matching the new voices with the old. Despite male or female, they chose a wonderful set of solo artists to embody the original flavor that was brought to the recording the first go round.
Newfound internet sensation Justin Bieber fills Richie’s shoes and ushers the song in with his soulful, but adolescent voice. Towards the end of the song, various solo artists performed ad-libbed cameos, but many of these were replaced. The one that stood out the most for me was the Stevie Wonder/Bruce Springsteen collaboration that was replaced by rappers Will.I.Am, Swizz Beats, Busta Rhymes, Iyaz, LL Cool J, Snoop Dogg, and Kayne West. It was at this point that I began to appreciate the progression that music has made in the past 25 years. Here it was they put “rap” in the middle of a charity benefit song and it fit appropriately. I also had to recant my feelings towards the use of auto-tune. It wasn’t used eXcessively and it gave artists such as Akon, T-Pain and Lil Wayne a way to participate despite the fact that they really aren’t crooners. I also loved Jamie Foxx singing in the voice of Ray Charles towards the end of the song. It was an eerie feeling of familiarity hearing Charles’ voice on both renditions, but seeing his face replaced with the familiar one who portrayed him in the biopic.
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The remake was recorded in the same studio as the original, although the background choir was bigger. The choir contained rappers, actors, and singers and, although many believed Vince Vaughn had no place there, we must remember that Dan Aykroyd appeared in the original and he is not a singer. Overall, the remake included more artists, hence the crowded look during the video. Michael Jackson’s vocals were not touched and he appeared posthumously in the recording, although two of his parts were performed alongside another artist. His first solo was shared with sister Janet in a split-screen per the request of Katherine Jackson. Although Usher replaced Huey Lewis, there was a point where Usher’s vocals were sung along with Jackson’s.
The replacement artists that stand out most for me are Miley Cyrus and Celine Dion. Cyrus sang with more heart and soul than I was led to believe that she had and Dion’s rendition of Lauper’s part was flawless, in my opinion. All in all, after watching both versions simultaneously, I feel that Jones and Richie did a wonderful job matching the new voices with the old. Despite male or female, they chose a wonderful set of solo artists to embody the original flavor that was brought to the recording the first go round.
Much peace, love and light
