Originally recorded in 1985, We Are the World set the standard for a charity single, then to aid Africa. Now, when faced with the disaster in Haiti, it is only natural to gather more than 80 current artists to rerecord one of the most poignant songs of my generation. It is without a doubt, this new release will make a massive amount of money to aid Haitians in their time of need, but it’s a shame this mess of a song is the anthem for their plight.
Everything about the song is a complete disaster it’s hard to know where to begin. It relied heavily on so many different styles that none of it worked. The song sounded so complicated I couldn’t discern what I was listening to. It was as if a group of musicians came together to sing their own song. All of the artists over-sang their parts, screaming into the mic showing the world they were participating in something important. From Justin Bieber‘s questionable pitch to T-Pain‘s Auto-Tune pitch correction, the performances of “We Are the World 25 for Haiti” lacked any real authenticity aside from the one Haitian in the group, Wyclef Jean, who reminded us all who this was actually for, and why I was enduring this painful recording.
Ultimately, this fell short of not only my expectations, but also the expectations of most. From what I was gathering on Twitter (search: We Are the World), most of the glowing remarks came from Justin Bieber fans, the rest were from those 15 and younger who don’t know any better. Sadly, what should have been another poignant piece for charity has become a punchline. I, and probably everyone who watched thought the exact same thing when Kanye sang his solo and T-Pain’s Auto-Tune pitch correction was too gimmicky for a song like this.
The biggest mistake Lionel Ritchie and Quincy Jones made was rerecording a song that had such a profound impact in 1985. There was no way it would live up to the expectations of anyone who remembered the original. They had the artists, they had the talent, they just needed to write a new song that fit better with the musical styles of today, that didn’t happen and the result is unacceptable.
