The Greatest Night In Pop, a Netflix special
- What sign did Quncy hang above the door? “Check your ego at the door”
- Who didn’t come because he thought it might be too many people and questionable quality? Prince.
- Who wrote a lot of it, and saved the day with several impromptu verse writings this night? Michael Jackson, along with Lionel Richie, wrote the song and played a significant role in its development.
- Who co-hosted the AMAs the previous night, won a handful of AMA awards, and played a key role in the “We Are the World” recording? Lionel Richie
- Who produced and directed the evening? Quincy Jones
- Who was the least nervous? Stevie Wonder
- Who got paid? No one. All singers and participants, including technical staff, volunteered their time.
- Who celebrated early? There are no verified reports of Al Jarreau or any other artist getting drunk at the event. But Al may have drunk wine.
- What time did it start and end? The session started around 10:30 PM on January 28, 1985, and ended approximately at 8:00 AM the next day. Rolling Stone Magazine did a minute-by-minute https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/we-are-the-world-a-minute-by-minute-breakdown-54619
- What takeout did they get? Food from Roscoe’s House of Chicken and Waffles and Wendy’s hamburgers was provided.
- What did Kenny Rogers eat? Wendy’s burgers nom nom.
- Who wore white “We are the world” sweatshirts? Kenny Rogers and Diana Ross
- What comedian was there? Dan Aykroyd because of his role in Blues Brothers.
- Who walked out during recording? Waylon Jennings. Stevie Wonder wanted everyone to sing a verse in Swahili, but no one spoke it very well. Waylon said, “No good ol’ boy ever spoke Swahili” and left. Swahili isn’t spoken in Ethiopia, the country for which the food drive was primarily organized.
- Who was the last to leave? Diana Ross was among the last to leave, famously expressing she didn’t want it to end.