As was written on the invitation, to all the stars who attended the A&M Recording Studios in Hollywood, California, on January 28, 1985 to record the fundraising hit song, We Are The World, ‘check your egos at the door’, is once again the message to all the celebrities both attending, and contributing to the memorial service for Michael Jackson at the Staples Center in Los Angeles today.

Michael, and Lionel Richie who co-wrote the 1985 hit, at that time managed to gather together a total of 45 such huge performers as Stevie Wonder, Paul Simon, Kenny Rogers, James Ingram, Tina Turner, Billy Joel, Diana Ross, Michael Jackson, Dionne Warwick, Willie Nelson, Al Jarreau, Bruce Springsteen, Steve Perry, Huey Lewis, Cyndi Lauper, Bob Dylan, Kim Carnes and Ray Charles.

And today, in its own way, the tribute to the life and legend of Michael is attracting today’s huge celebrities such as Jennifer Hudson and John Mayer, along with the more established and vintage performers as Mariah Carey and Dionne Warwick.

At the time of, We Are The World, Columbia Records donated their manufacturing and distribution costs to the effort and the recording itself, We Are the World hit stores on Tuesday, March 5, 1985, and all 800,000 copies sold out before the end of the weekend. It debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 chart at number twenty-one. On April 5 more than 5,000 radio stations played the song at the same time. It became the United States’ number one single on April 13 and held the position for four weeks.

So can we now expect this song to be released all over again, with of course no Michael vocals, as his peers sing the tribute to him at his memorial today?

Along with the record, the video, and related merchandise, from We Are the World raised, which amounted to over $63 million for famine relief, could we now see all this being repeated with the benefits going to one of Michael’s favourite charities?
There comes a time, when we hear a certain call
When the world must come together as one
There are people dying
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 will soon make change
We are all a part of God’s great big family
And the truth you know
Love is all we need

chorus:
We are the world, we are the children
We are the ones who make a brighter day
So let’s start giving
There’s a choice we’re making
We’re saving our own lives
It’s true we’ll make a better day, just you and me

Send them your heart so they’ll know that someone cares
And their lives will be stronger and free.
As God has shown us by turning stones to bread
And so we all must lend a helping hand

When you’re down and out, there seems no hope at all
But if you believe there’s no way we can fall
Let us realize that a change can only come
When we stand together as one