As if the original didn’t cause enough pain and suffering in the world, they’ve done it again, only this time with HD video and extra autotune. Especially autotune. I mean LOTS of autotune. It’s like a SONG MADE OF AUTOTUNE. More thoughts below the video.

We will remove this video if enough people donate to our “We Will Remove This Video If You Donate To Us Instead Fund”

Call me cynical, but I had doubts about the real benefits of the original “We Are The World” recording, beyond making a bunch of mainstream artists and their fans feel good about themselves. In spite of assurances that all the artists and production people worked 100% for free, there’s little transparency in terms of what happened with the actual revenue from unit sales. If you review the USA for Africa web site, the only real numbers you’ll find are when they say (in their 40 page “Oral History” PDF document) that “…by May 1985, the first royalty payment to USA for Africa arrived, it was $6.5 million…” If you understand typical record industry royalties of that era, that was – at best – 10% of gross revenue on unit sales after post-production, manufacturing, distribution, and other expenses. Who knows whether or not this was an effective use of aid dollars. Feel free to support their latest venture, but read the small print. As the new web site points out on the bottom of the “Donate” page:

“The We Are the World Foundation was formed on February 5, 2010, as a nonprofit public benefit corporation at the request of its founders, Lionel Richie and Quincy Jones. The Foundation is applying to the IRS for recognition of tax-exempt status, and our legal counsel is confident that our application will be approved. When the IRS recognizes our tax-exempt status, that recognition will be retroactive to the date the Foundation was formed.”

Keep in mind that funds will obviously be going to startup and infrastructure costs for their new/restructured non-profit. Personally, I think your money would be better spent by donating to any of the lists of organizations compiled by the Better Business Bureau, the New York Times, or CNN. Or any of these larger established organizations:

• Red Cross
• CARE International
• Doctors Without Borders
• International Rescue Committee

Or, you could donate to the Dissociated Press We Will Remove This Video If You Donate To Us Instead Fund, as we mentioned at the top. Things are bad right here at home you know.

By the way, if you think I’m exagerrating regarding just how bad this remake is, please note that both rappersiknow.com and illdoctrine.com have shut down their sites in protest:

The new We Are The World is no Hear n’ Aid, that’s for sure.

But don’t let any of this stop you. Buy the tune if you want.