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We Are the World 25 for Haiti

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"We Are the World 25 for Haiti"
Song

"We Are the World 25 for Haiti" is a 2010 song and charity single recorded by the supergroup Artists for Haiti. It is a remake of the 1985 hit song "We Are the World", which was written by American musicians Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie, and was recorded by USA for Africa to benefit famine relief in Africa. Initially, in late 2009, it had been suggested to Richie and Quincy Jones—producer of the original "We Are the World"—that a re-cut version of the song be re-released under the title "Live 25". Following the magnitude 7.0 Mw earthquake in Haiti, which devastated the area and killed hundreds of thousands of people, it was agreed that the song would be re-recorded by new artists, in the hope that it would reach a new generation and help benefit the people of Haiti.

The song was recorded in fourteen hours by over eighty artists on February 1, and was released on February 12, 2010, during the opening ceremony of the 2010 Winter Olympics. "We Are the World 25 for Haiti" was released as a CD single and a music download. It was produced by Rickey Minor and RedOne, and executively produced by Richie, Jones and Haitian-American musician Wyclef Jean. A music video directed by Paul Haggis was released to accompany and promote the song.

"We Are the World 25 for Haiti" is musically structured similar to "We Are the World", but includes Auto-Tune and a rap verse, which was written by some of the song's hip hop artists. Michael Jackson died months before the song's release, but his material from the 1985 recording sessions was incorporated into the song and music video, as per the request of his mother, Katherine. His younger sister Janet duets with him on the song, and his nephews Taj, TJ and Taryll—collectively known as 3T—feature on the track's chorus. "We Are the World 25 for Haiti" received generally negative reviews by contemporary music critics, with criticism focused on the song's new musical additions, as well as the choice of artists who appear on the track. The song was commercially successful worldwide, charting within the top 20 in multiple countries.

Background

Main articles: We Are the World and 2010 Haiti earthquake

In 1985, "We Are the World", a song and charity single originally recorded by USA for Africa, was released. It was written by American musicians Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie, and co-produced by Quincy Jones and Michael Omartian for the album We Are the World. The song was well received by music critics and was the recipient of several awards. The song was a worldwide commercial success, as it topped music charts throughout the world and became the fastest-selling American pop single in history, as well as the first single to be certified multi-platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America. Up until 1997, "We Are the World" was the best selling pop single of all time. It was succeeded by Elton John's 1997 version of "Candle in the Wind".[1][2]

A deep green color car with it's roof caved in and the back of the car crushed in. In the background, there is a tree, two phone line poles and a wall with graffiti on it that is half broken down.
Earthquake damage in Port-au-Prince

On January 12, 2010, Haiti was struck by a magnitude 7.0 Mw earthquake. It was the country's most severe earthquake in over 200 years and caused widespread damage.[3] The epicenter of the quake was just outside the Haitian capital Port-au-Prince.[4] It has been estimated that the death toll could reach 200,000.[5] Before the earthquake, Jones and Richie had planned to organize a re-recording of "We Are the World" on January 28, 2010 — the 25th anniversary of the original recording of the song.[6] Randy Phillips, who was a key figure in the song being re-issued, said that "We Are The World" producer Ken Kragen had suggested to re-cut "We Are the World" and title it "Live 25".[7] However, Lionel Richie and Jones were "very lukewarm" about the idea.[7] Phillips commented that,

"[They felt] that what happened 25 years ago was iconic and they did everything they could for Africa at that time, and they didn't feel re-cutting the song really made any sense. Basically, Lionel didn't really want to do it, and we kind of let it die by not issuing the publishing license, because Lionel owns the copyright along with Michael Jackson's estate. That was in November/December [2009]. They had gotten Visa on board as an underwriter of that effort, and I think they were going to try and premiere it at the World Cup."[7]

However, because of the devastation caused in Haiti, these plans were postponed.[6] Phillips said that Jones had called Lionel and said, "this is what this song is written for, as a fundraising vehicle for causes, tragedies, catastrophes like this. Why don't we take over the process, call our friends, and actually do this?"[7] Lionel understood the urgency of Haiti, and in January 2010, it was agreed that "We Are the World" would be re-recorded to help benefit Haiti, similar to how the original recording helped famine relief in Africa.[6] Richie commented, "Unfortunately, sometimes it takes a hit record to make someone decide to save a life. I want this song to be the battle cry again. Every once in a while, you have to wake the world up. We slept right through Katrina. If we are not a socially aware culture, we're going to fail."[8]

Recording

An elderly African-American man. The male is wearing a grey jacket open and a wine color shirt with a black tie.
Quincy Jones was a key figure in the production and recording of "We Are the World 25 for Haiti".

The new version of the song was recorded on February 1, 2010 in a session lasting 14 hours.[8] Eighty-five musicians were reportedly involved in the song's recording,[9][10] which was held in the same place as the original, at Henson Recording Studio on Beverly Boulevard in Los Angeles, California.[11] Also similar to the 1985 process, some of the participating musicians were already in Los Angeles to attend an awards ceremony: the 52nd Grammy Awards.[12] Jones said of the recording session, "It was a big challenge. It takes a serious army and serious emotional architecture. I've never seen such a diverse group of people, and they came for the right reasons."[8]

The new version features updated lyrics and music, such as a rap segment pertaining to Haiti, described as a "Greek chorus extension", which was written by Will.i.am.[13][12][14][15] Other writers included Kanye West, Jones and LL Cool J.[7] Lionel Richie and Jones revealed that Michael Jackson's younger sister Janet duets with her late brother, as per a request from their mother, Katherine Jackson. In the official video, there is archive footage of Michael Jackson from the original 1985 recording.[8] Richie said that he agreed with Katherine's request, commenting, "It made me feel more secure about this. We definitely felt a void. He's the other parent [to the song]."[8] The production team for the song include RedOne and musical director Rickey Minor. RedOne said that it took a week to compose "We Are The World 25 For Haiti".[16] He commented that he wanted to keep the "class of the original one" and did not want to "mess it up, because it's too good".[16] He noted that he wanted to make the song "sound more now and current" while keeping the originals "whole chord progressions, the feeling and the vibe, but brought fresher sounds that are more now."[16]

Haitian-American musician Wyclef Jean also serves as a producer.[12] In addition, Wyclef Jean sings the first line of the second chorus in Haitian Creole. Richie said new artist were selected for the song so the song could be aimed at a new audience, commenting, "We have a familiar song that kids learn in school. Why not bring in Miley Cyrus and the Jonas Brothers and let them address the issues?"[8] adding that "It was designed so that we wouldn't have any of the originals there, so that we could pass on the baton to the next generation".[17] Phillips said that the producers received 80 percent of the people they wanted as recording artists for the song.[7]

At the time of the recording, numerous artists commented on the process, the 1985 version of the song and co-writer Michael Jackson. R&B singer Jordin Sparks revealed that despite being born after the release of the original, the song had a "huge impact" on her.[18] Celine Dion said that the release of the song would not only benefit the Haitian people, but also serve as a remembrance of "the passion [Michael] Jackson had for helping those in need".[18] Lionel Richie and Quincy Jones echoed Dion's sentiments and further stated that if the singer were alive, he would have wanted to be just as involved as he had been a quarter of a century ago.[18] According to Phillips, there were a "handful" of musicians who either declined or could not rearrange their schedules for the song's recording, including country singer Taylor Swift,[13] who was going to be touring in Australia.[19]

Artists for Haiti musicians

Conductors
Soloists (in order of appearance)[20][21]
Chorus

Release, reception, and promotion

The 2010 version of "We Are the World", released under the name Artists for Haiti, debuted on American TV channel NBC on February 12 during their coverage of the 2010 Winter Olympics opening ceremony.[22][12] Similar to marketing of "We Are the World", a music video of the song was filmed and released. The music video was directed by, Paul Haggis, an Academy award-winning film director.[22][14] Haggis said that he finished the video 12 hours early.[23] Haitian film students were involved in the video as part of the production crew.[23] The official video for the song was formatted similar to the original; the video opens with the song's title with the recording artists' signatures surrounding it, as well as clips of the artists performing their parts in the recording studio and included archive footage of Michael Jackson performing his part of the song. The video was intercut with clips showing people in Haiti following the earthquake.[23]

All proceeds from "We Are the World 25 for Haiti" will go to the newly formed charity We Are the World Foundation LLC, which will go straight to Haiti.[16][24] The songs tagline is "download to donate."[7] Options for the songs are the audio for $1.29, the music video for $1.99, or both for $2.99.[7] In February 2010, Phillips said that physical products for the song are being looked into and negotiated, including Target Corporation handling the physical products ten days to two weeks after the digital release of the song.[7]

"We Are The World 25 for Haiti" received generally negative reviews from contemporary music critics. The song was criticized for its use of Auto-Tune, the choice of recording artists, and for the song's rap. Chris Richards, a writer for The Washington Post, described the song as being "horribly oversung".[25] Richards commented that the most "disappointing" thing about the song was that "there were too few voices from the country, rock and Latin music communities."[25] He also noted that "nobody can argue with its worthy cause" because of the songs proceeds to relief in Haiti, but remarked that the song did not have "We Are the World"'s "original thrill" due to the song's "panoply of voices".[25]

Jon Parales, a writer for The New York Times remarked that while the song's "Hollywood gloss" was "durable", the song has "all the pitfalls of a Hollywood remake".[26] Parales commented that the musicians for the songs are "rises or falls on its talent pool" and criticized the choice of male musicians compared to "We Are the World"'s original male artists.[26] Maura Johnston, a writer for MTV, wrote more positively about the song, commenting favorably on the contemporary artists' performances in living up to their predecessors. "Despite the different faces, the overall feel is similar to the original's," Johnston wrote.[27][15] Simon Vozick-Levinson, a writer for Entertainment Weekly, gave the song a mixed review, noting that the "We Are the World 25 for Haiti" was not as good as the original: "All in all, I can’t say this new 'We Are the World' measured up to the 1985 version."[28]

Chart performance

"We Are the World 25 for Haiti" debuted within the top 30 in multiple territories. "We Are the World 25 for Haiti" charted at number 27 on the Spanish Singles Chart on the charts issue date February 14, 2010.[29] The song debuted at number 17 in New Zealand on the charts issue date of February 15, 2010.[30] "We Are the World 25 for Haiti" peaked within the top five, charting at number three in Norwegian on the charts issue date of February 16, 2010; the chart's position is currently the song's highest charting international territory since its release.[31] The song debuted at number 25 in France on the issue date of February 13.[32]

"We Are the World 25 for Haiti" charted at number two on the Billboard Hot 100, charting behind Keshas Tik Tok, which was in its ninth week at Number One.[33] "We Are the World 25 for Haiti" charted higher in its debut week that the original version, which entered the Billboard Hot 100 at number 21.[33] According to Billboard, the songs charting position stemmed mainly from download sales, with a reported 96% of the song's charting being from such sales.[34] Following the song's debut during the Olympics, 246 radio stations sampled the song in the United States.[34] Radio stations in New York expressed that they would play the song frequently to raise awareness of Haitian citizens in need.[34] Other radio stations throughout the United States echoed similar responses on the song getting airplay.[34]

The song also sold over 267,000 downloads in three days.[33][35] "We Are the World 25 for Haiti" debuted at number eight on the Canadian Hot 100 dated for February 27.[36] The song also debuted at number six in Belgium Wallonia and Flanders, as well at debuting at number 17 in Sweden.[30] The song also charted at number twenty eight in Danish.[30] The song entered Irish charts at number nine.[37] In the song's second week of release in Norwegian, "We Are the World 25 for Haiti" moved up two spaces, topping the chart.[38] Unlike the songs chart performance in territories like Norway, the song dropped four places on the Billboard Hot 100 to sixth place.[39]

Charts positions

Chart (2010) Peak
position
Australian Singles Chart[40] 18
Belgian Ultratop Singles Chart[30] 1
Canadian Hot 100[36] 7
Danish Singles Chart[30] 28
French Digital Singles Chart[41] 7
Irish Singles Chart[37] 9
New Zealand Singles Chart[30] 8
Norwegian Singles Chart[31] 1
Spanish Singles Chart[29] 15
Swedish Singles Chart[30] 17
U.S. Billboard Hot 100[33] 2
Preceded by Norwegian Singles Chart number-one single
2010 (Week 8) 		Succeeded by
Incumbent

Track listings

  1. Short version[7] "We Are the World 25 for Haiti" - 3: 17
  2. Long version[7] "We Are the World 25 for Haiti" - 7: 37

References

  1. ^ "Ultratop Singles Chart Archives". Ultratop.be. Hung Medien. Retrieved 2010-02-15.
  2. ^ Anne Beatts (1997-10-12). "If It's a Hit, Why Stop There?". LATimes.com. Tribune Company. Retrieved 2010-02-16.
  3. ^ "Magnitude 7.0 – Haiti Region". Retrieved January 12, 2010.
  4. ^ "Major earthquake off Haiti causes hospital to collapse – Telegraph". telegraph.co.uk. Retrieved January 12, 2010.
  5. ^ "Haiti says 200,000 may be dead, violence breaks out — Reuters". reuters.com. Retrieved January 14, 2010.
  6. ^ a b c Billy Johnson (2010-01-21). "'We Are The World' Re-recording Reportedly In The Works". Yahoo! Music. Yahoo Inc. Retrieved 2010-02-15.
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Ray Waddell (2010-02-12). "Producer Details 'We Are The World 25' On Eve Of Debut". Billboard.com. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. Retrieved 2010-02-15.
  8. ^ a b c d e f Edna Gundersen (2010-02-14). "Quincy Jones, Lionel Richie pass 'We Are the World' baton". USAToday.com. Gannett Co. Inc. Retrieved 2010-02-15.
  9. ^ "We Are The World, Haiti (VIDEO): New Version For Haiti Earthquake Victims". HuffingtonPost.com. HuffingtonPost.com, Inc. 2010-02-12. Retrieved 2010-02-15.
  10. ^ The Associated Press (2010-02-12). "'We Are the World' debuts, worldwide airing set". Sanluisobispo.com. Tribune Company. Retrieved 2010-02-15.
  11. ^ Solvej Schou (2010-02-02). "Stars gather to cover 'We Are the World' for Haiti". USAToday.com. Gannett Co. Inc. Retrieved 2010-02-15.
  12. ^ a b c d Alan Duke (2010-02-02). "Stars gather for 'We Are the World' recording". CNN.com. Time Warner Inc. Retrieved 2010-02-02.
  13. ^ a b Kevin Mazur (2010-02-03). "Behind the scenes for 'World: 'A good vibe going on'". USAToday.com. Gannett Co. Inc. Retrieved 2010-02-15.
  14. ^ a b "New voices unite for 'We Are the World'". USAToday.com. Gannett Co. Inc. 2010-02-02. Retrieved 2010-02-17. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |lauthor= ignored (help)
  15. ^ a b Maura Johnston (2010-02-12). "'We Are The World: 25 For Haiti' Unites Music's Biggest Names". MTV.com. Viacom. Retrieved 2010-02-15.
  16. ^ a b c d Kelly Marino (2010-02-11). "'We Are The World' Remake Producer RedOne Aims For 'Current' Sound". MTV.com. Viacom. Retrieved 2010-02-15.
  17. ^ Lorraine Passchier (2010-02-12). "'We Are the World' remake debuts during Vancouver 2010 Olympic Games". VancouverSun.com. Canwest Publishing Inc. Retrieved 2010-02-15.
  18. ^ a b c Vena, Jocelyn (February 2, 2010). "Michael Jackson's Influence Lives On In 'We Are The World' Remake". MTV. Retrieved February 2, 2010.
  19. ^ "Correction: Taylor Swift Not Available For 'We Are The World' Remake". AccessHollywood.com. NBC Universal, Inc. 2010-01-28. Retrieved 2010-02-15.
  20. ^ "Complete list of 'We Are the World' artists". USAToday.com. Gannett Co. Inc. 2010-02-02. Retrieved 2010-02-17. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |lauthor= ignored (help)
  21. ^ "Credits « Official Site of We Are The World 25 For Haiti". We Are The World Foundation. Retrieved 2010-02-22. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |lauthor= (help)
  22. ^ a b "Stars in US re-record We Are the World for Haiti". BBC News. (February 2, 2010). Retrieved February 2, 2010. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  23. ^ a b c Jayson Rodriguez (2010-02-13). "'We Are The World' Director Celebrates Premiere With Haitian Film Students". MTV.com. Viacom. Retrieved 2010-02-15.
  24. ^ Mira Veda (2010-02-15). "Quincy Jones and Lionel Ritchie Remake "We Are The World" for Haiti". HuffingtonPost.com. HuffingtonPost.com, Inc. Retrieved 2010-02-15.
  25. ^ a b c Chris Richards (2010-02-13). "Less-than-stellar remake 'We Are the World' debuts at Olympics in Vancouver". WashingtonPost.com. The Washington Post Company. Retrieved 2010-02-15.
  26. ^ a b John Parales (2010-0214). "For Haiti, They Are the Remake". NYTimes.com. The New York Times Company. Retrieved 2010-02-15. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  27. ^ Maura Johnston (2010-02-13). "'We Are The World' Soloists Lil Wayne, Pink Take Cues From The Original". MTV.com. Viacom. Retrieved 2010-02-15.
  28. ^ Simon Vozick-Levinson (2010-02-12). "'We Are the World' remake for Haiti debuts during Olympics opening ceremony: What did you think?". EW.com. Time Warner Inc. Retrieved 2010-02-17.
  29. ^ a b "Top 50 Cancionies" (PDF). PROMUSICA.es. Productores de Música de España. Retrieved 2010-02-17.
  30. ^ a b c d e f g "Artists for Haiti - We Are the World (song)". Charts.org.nz. Hung Medien. Retrieved 2010-02-16.
  31. ^ a b "Topp 20 Single uke 8, 2010". Lista.vg.no. Verdens Gang AS. Retrieved 2010-02-17.
  32. ^ "French Digital Singles Chart - 13/02/2010". Lescharts.com (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 2010-02-20.
  33. ^ a b c d Silvio Pietroluongo (2010-02-17). "'We Are The World' Returns to the Upper Reaches of the Hot 100". Billboard.com. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. Retrieved 2010-02-17.
  34. ^ a b c d Gary Trust (2010-02-23). "'We Are The World 25," Radio's Reaction, Pt. 1 [Page 1]". Billboard.com. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. Retrieved 2010-02-25.
  35. ^ Todd Martens (2010-02-16). "On the charts: Sade's 'Soldier' sets the tally ablaze; 'We Are the World' tops 260,000 downloads". LATimes.com. Tribune Company. Retrieved 2010-02-17.
  36. ^ a b "February 27, 2010". Billboard.com. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. Retrieved 2010-02-19.
  37. ^ a b "Top 50 Singles Week ending 18th February 2010" Irish Recorded Music Association (2010).
  38. ^ "Artist for Haiti - We Are The World 25 For Haiti". NorwegianCharts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved 2010-02-25.
  39. ^ "Week of March 6, 2010". Billboard.com. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. Retrieved 2010-02-23.
  40. ^ "Top 50 Singles Chart - Australian Recording Industry Association". ARIA. Retrieved 2010-02-21.
  41. ^ "French Download Single Top 50 - 20/02/2010" (in French). Lescharts. Retrieved 2010-02-26.
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