Geldof confirms Live 8
2005-06-01 06:47
London - There will be at least five dozen performers, from Bono to 50 Cent, in five venues across the world, from Rome's Circus Maximus to the streets of Philadelphia.
All will unite behind one simple message for world leaders: end poverty in Africa.
Twenty years after he organised the landmark Live Aid concerts, Bob Geldof announced plans on Tuesday for the Live 8 concerts. They will take place on July 2, just days before leaders of the world's richest countries, the G8, meet in Britain.
"We don't want people's money. We want them," Geldof said.
Musicians including Madonna, Paul McCartney, U2, Bon Jovi, Brian Wilson, Crosby Stills & Nash, Coldplay, Sting, Stevie Wonder and Jay-Z will grace stages in London, Philadelphia, Berlin, Paris and Rome.
The 1985 Live Aid concerts, held in London and Philadelphia on the same day, sold out both venues, drew a TV audience of millions around the globe and raised US$40m (about R272m) for poverty relief in Africa.
Since then, Geldof said, Africa has only become poorer.
"Twenty years on, it strikes me as being morally repulsive and intellectually absurd that people die of want in a world of surplus," Geldof said. "This is to finally, as much as we can, put a stop to that."
Geldof said he had resisted any recreation of Live Aid, but relented to pressure from U2's Bono and others: "It seemed to me that we could gather again, but this time not for charity but for political justice."
The aim of the concerts was to create attention and "political heat" ahead of the G8 meeting to persuade the leaders to agree to cancel Africa's unpayable debts, double aid for the continent and make trade fair, Geldof said.
Concerts will be free
The concerts will be free. Musicians will donate their services, and other costs will be met by corporate sponsors.
Venues for the July 2 events include London's Hyde Park, a location near the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, Circus Maximus in Rome and along Philadelphia's Benjamin Franklin Parkway at the steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art. Geldof said negotiations for the Paris venue continued.
Fans will enter a lottery by cell phone text message to obtain a ticket.
Those performing in London for Live 8 include McCartney, John, Mariah Carey, Coldplay, Dido, Keane, Annie Lennox, Madonna, Muse, the Scissor Sisters, Joss Stone, Stereophonics, Sting, Snoop Dogg, Robbie Williams, U2 and R.E.M.
In Philadelphia, acts performing will include Will Smith, the Dave Matthews Band, Bon Jovi, 50 Cent, P. Diddy and Jay-Z as well as Wonder.
Among artists scheduled for Berlin: a-ha, Crosby, Stills & Nash, Lauryn Hill and Wilson. The concert in Rome will feature Faith Hill and Duran Duran among others. And in Paris, Jamiroquai, Craig David, Youssou N'Dour and Yannick Noah will be among those taking part.
- AP