Documentary: The Greatest Night In Pop

Documentary: The Greatest Night In Pop. The Making of – “We Are The World.”

In 2024, film maker Bao Nguyen released a new documentary, “The Greatest Night In Pop,” that dives deep into the making of the eighth best-selling single of all time, 1985’s “We Are The World.”

Quick Backstory:
For many of us 80s babies, we can remember the song “We Are The World” and its impact. The song was bringing awareness too and raising money for USA for Africa, a humanitarian relief effort to help fight the horrific famine epidemic in Ethiopia in the early 1980s.

The idea of “We Are The World,” was the brainchild of the legendary Harry Belafonte (RIP) with help from the multitalented, Ken Kragen (RIP). It was inspired by Bob Geldof’s British group Band Aid’s 1984 single, “Do They Know It’s Christmas?”, benefiting the same cause. Belafonte and Kragen recruited Lionel Richie, who then requested that the late Quincy Jones (RIP) be brought in as a co-producer and to orchestrate the recording. Richie then partnered with Michael Jackson (RIP) to write the song.

The Big Night:
“We Are The World” was recorded and filmed in one overnight session, January 28^th 1985, at the infamous A&M Recording Studio in Hollywood, CA immediately following the American Music Awards. The music video and the documentary “We Are The World, The Story Behind The Song” accompanied the release of the song on March 7^th 1985. It’s a fantastic documentary and should be watched or rewatched along with new “The Greatest Night In Pop” documentary.  

40 Years Later:
“The Greatest Night In Pop,” from director Bao Nguyen casts a new light on the song and historic relevance. It’s like a documentary of the original documentary and truly goes behind the scenes interviewing the key players and musicians that made this historic movement happen. It’s dope. You get first had recollection of the experience from musicians, producers, and more. Without giving away too much, because you need to experience it yourself, I do want to share a few takeaways that won’t spoil the film.

• The caliber of talent gathered in close quarters at one time to lend their voices was/is absolutely wild. I got chills and found myself smiling randomly each time I’ve watched it, about 3 times as of this post.
• Seeing all these A-list artists genuinely fanboying/fangirling out over each other was really interesting. This experience appeared to be a very grounding, humbling, and uncomfortable at times, it’s like the world slowed down and these celebrities could take in what’s actually happening. They are all superstars in their own lane but the love and respect they have for each other was cool to see.
• The the logistical execution to make this happen in just under two weeks, in the 80’s without the technology and communication we have these days, is nothing short of INCREDIBLE. Imagine the work this took to pull off.
• Lastly, I can’t help but to feel captivated and grateful to have lived through this moment as it happened to understand how important, powerful, historical, and simply amazing this effort was, well, still is. Empathy was heavy and willingness to help was abundant.

A quick factoid, through the years of my record digging/collecting, I’ve acquired multiple copies of the “We Are The World” vinyl record strictly for nostalgia purposes, I think I have 8+ copies. Hoarder maybe???

Huge shoutout to the director of “The Greatest Night In Pop,” Bao Nguyen. His creativity and desire to bring this moment back to life is well received. THANK YOU. Below is a PBS interview with Bao Nguyen sharing how, nearly 40 years later, he was able to retell this inspiring story from the curators, production team, and artists involved. Also, there are links to the original documentary and the Netflix documentary, unfortunately, I couldn’t embed them here.

Thanks for reading and as always feel free to share.

-Renzo

Links:

As of this post you can watch the original 1985 We Are The World – Story Behind The Song on Tubi for free.
Currently Netflix is hosting The Greatest Night In Pop with your monthly subscription.

References: The information above was sourced from Wikipedia, the TGNIP documentary, and my own general knowledge.
Image above courtesy of Patrick Moran on The Talking Buffalo Podcast via Substack.