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Blog 8, Kotkes

I chose the song “We are the World” by U.S.A for Africa which was written by Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie and produced by Quincy JOnes and Michael Omartian . This song was created to help raise awareness for the famine going on in Africa. There was a political change needed to stop the people from dying in Africa from the terrible famine in 1983-1985. The song’s purpose was for people to persuade their governments to participate in the relief effort in Ethiopia,Africa. I think listeners of the song definitely were made more aware of the struggles of the famine that Africa was going through.The musical genre that “We are the World” would be part of is rock. But, many people do not accept this song as a piece of rock music. 

The beginning of the song consists of these words:

“There are people dying

Oh, and it’s time to lend a hand to life

The greatest gift of all

We can’t go on

Pretending day-by-day

That someone, somewhere soon make a change

We’re all a part of God’s great big family

And the truth, you know, love is all we need”

These words are raising awareness to the people and to the politicians. We cannot live life and assume Africa will be taken care of. We need to fight for Africa and help collect the funds for relief from the government. 

One musical characteristic of the piece of music is the individuality of the singers in the song. There are about 21 soloists in this song. Each of them sings a solo which shows the individuality of the singers. It is showing that every person, individually, must make this choice and care about this situation in order for a change to be made. It also shows that every individual can be responsible for a change.


3 Comments

  1. I think your choice of song was great, as it was a serious issue that needed to be dealt with, and this song really made everyone aware of the struggles in Africa. I also liked how you mentioned that for the musical characteristics, the song was showing the individuality of each person, and how everyone can really have an impact and create change. Great post!

  2. Famine is a worldwide problem that many people suffer and have to deal with so I think mentioning a song regarding this issue was a great choice! The song’s awareness to people and the politicians about the condition of Africa were mentioned really well and I think the song also expresses that well too.

  3. Hey Sophia! I found it interesting how America wrote a song for Africa. It is a great way for Americans to raise awareness about the famine that Africans are experiencing. I also liked how you connected the individuality of the singers, to the choices they can make to handle the situation.

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