On July 13, 1985, nearly 40 percent of the world’s population watched some of Live Aid, a pair of concerts in London and Philadelphia that raised millions for famine relief, most specifically in Ethiopia. At the time it was reported to be 40-50 million pounds but Wikipedia says they now link it to 150 million in donations. There has been a lot of subsequent controversy about whether the funds were misappropriated by the Ethiopian government, and whether Bob Geldof or Live Aid itself did enough to understand how to get the money where they intended for it to go. People have reported on certain misuses of money and then apologized and walked it back… there has been a lot going on here, per Wikipedia. As a kid, all I knew is that every band I cared about was doing stuff on-stage ONE AFTER THE OTHER. And now I look back, and… friends, get ready for the mullets.
