Surely, they know it’s Christmas by now?! How much AID is this BAND still providing?

As a British citizen, Christmas isn’t Christmas until Boy George and Paul Young tell me so. The sonically superb Christmas classic Do They Know It’s Christmas was originally released by one of the most star-studded supergroups to date, Band Aid, in December 1984. The campaign was orchestrated by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure to raise money for the relief of famine in Ethiopia. Raising over £200 million for those in need, the impact of this charity single is entirely undeniable, with unwaveringly inspirational intentions. However, forty years on from the track’s original release, a tasteless remix of the tune has caused quite a stir. Despite its honourable aims, the (mis)representation of Africa periodically reinforced by the song’s lyrics and its accompanying images is beginning to be, rightfully, challenged.

Let’s get this straight. The ORIGINAL song in question is, personally, on a par with The Pogues. This song enabled some of my first endeavours into the rich history of our nation’s pop music. I felt inspired by the myriad of tones created by the collaborative efforts of the finest British and Irish musicians, and equally thankful for the phenomenal progression of the trends within the barber industry… The point I’m trying to make, one my punk-of-a-mother won’t let me forget, is that, at the time of its release, Do They Know It’s Christmas represented global unity and esteemed hope. With only admirable objectives, Geldof and Ure attempted to combat the unfathomable famine of Ethiopia the only way they knew how: with their music. Serving now to epitomise the generous and good-willed nature of the British public, the work of Band Aid undeniably changed the course of history. Geldof recently recounted to Lorraine how he had been stopped and thanked by an African gentleman for giving him life and, then, for giving him his son’s. No human on earth could begin to deny the inconsumable impact Band Aid has had on areas of Africa, but times have changed, both in our nation and in theirs. To speak analogously, one can no longer presume a person to be male based on their possession of a penis, given the context of complex gender identification provided by modern societies. Much in the same way, the objective to feed the world may have been initially marked as meritorious, however, as time, and the continent of Africa has progressed, their diseased representation constructed by the work of Band Aid has, arguably, caused more harm than good.

The main issue with the campaign is the incessant re-release of the track. Whilst it may be, still, to raise money for those less fortunate, sponging off the charitable cheer that inevitably comes with Christmas, any other song with lyrics implying that all peace and love across the whole continent of Africa is provided by the British public would simply not be tolerated.  In reality, the greatest gift they could get this year would be more accurate representations and respect for their beautiful continent, a message attempting to be spread by Afro-beat singer, songwriter and rapper Nana Richard Abiona, better known as Fuse ODG.

To express his disapproval of the relentless recurrence of the harrowing images of his native continent in the name of charity, Fuse ODG’s latest single was released last month in reply to the supergroup, aptly titled We Know It’s Christmas. The video accompanying Fuse’s track is packed full of the positivity produced by African Christmas celebrations, which look entirely admirable. Infinitely more appealing than scranning a soggy supersized Yorkshire pudding filled with festive mush whilst battling the oncoming stampede of Christmas market human traffic. Maybe that’s just me…

'African problems need to be solved by Africans’ states Fuse in the Good Morning Britain clip that prefaces his music video as the Ghanaian songwriter argues on air the detrimental impact of the charity provided by Band Aid. Fuse insights that Africa must begin to inspire its next generation of leaders rather than relying on the charity of others. He has released an app, School of New Africa, with Bajan and Jamaican entrepreneur Andre Hackett. SONA sets out to inform and educate users on African history, aiming to eradicate social injustice by telling the hidden stories of the continent’s history.

In an interview with Yvette Twangiramariya for the BBC, Fuse ODG states how got approached by Geldof ten years ago to be part of the Band Aid 30 single released in 2014. Fuse discusses his initial excitement when asked to work with ‘trailblazers’ such as One Direction and Ed Sheeran and, seen as he was a relatively new artist at the time, was enthralled by the exposure that this opportunity could offer. However, as he also discussed on the podcast Your Aunties Could Never and with Nick Ferrari on LBC, Fuse was forced to turn down Geldof’s offer. Upon his refusal to work on a song that serves to portray an inaccurate and insensitive depiction of his native continent, Bob phoned Fuse to discuss his decision. After explaining the lyrics and the images associated with the track fail to align with Fuse’s artistic mission – to realign the public perspective of Africa – he suggested changing aspects of the campaign to represent current Africa, 30 years on from the initial Band Aid charity single. According to Fuse, Geldof’s response was abrupt, stubbornly stating he hadn’t changed his model for the past thirty years, and he wasn’t about to. Of course, no one can ever be sure of the exact exchange that occurred on this call. However, could it be possible that Geldof is reluctant to let go of the do-gooder high that he experienced for such an extended period towards the back end of the last decade? Could he simply be addicted to the drug of money-raising? Not for the first time, I find myself reasoning this argument with an episode of FRIENDS…

Season five, episode four: The One Where Phoebe Hates PBS. For the FRIENDS-phobics out there, the gist of this episode is that Joey challenges Phoebe to find a selfless good deed. This comes around as Joey’s latest acting role entails answering the phone as part of a telethon raising money for PBS. Whilst on paper, this may seem like a good deed, Joey can’t deny how good it feels to offer this service and how he’s only really doing it to get on TV, increasing his exposure and career prospects. Phoebe’s much weaker but equally admirable attempt to find a selfless good deed entailed her allowing a bee to sting her, making him look tough in front of all of his bee friends. Although, in reality she essentially encouraged the insect to commit suicide. In the end, the conclusion is drawn: there is no such thing as a selfless good deed.

I feel as though this is where Geldof finds himself trapped. Whilst far removed from the sceptical 90s sitcom humour that I have used as an (admittedly weak) example, the sentiment of the two instances remains the same. Bob may be so deep within this serotonin-inducing cycle of giving a little help to the helpless that he is unable to see the opportunities that his tarnished and untrue representation of Africa has stripped away. He appears too stubborn to simply change the lyrics, which would not only demonstrate his acceptance of his misrepresentation of the continent but also spread awareness of the joy and celebration that can be found across Africa at Christmas.

Fuse has also noted the impact of the misrepresentation created by Band Aid that perpetuates outdated and negative stereotypes of Africa, portraying the continent solely as a place of poverty and famine. The torturous images of Africa used to curate a tarnished representation of the entire continent in the mind of every member of the British public have deterred an unpredictable amount of tourism and investment. These opportunities could have enabled the independent financial growth of this beautiful part of the world that so many natives naturally return to for the festive season, swapping out the snow and the sleet for a bit of sunshine to accompany their celebrations… I know I would.

Whilst the latest lyrics of Band Aid may accurately reflect the impoverished reality of certain areas of Africa, Fuse believes it’s unfair to continue to coat the entire continent with the same old stereotypes. If a song were to be released encapsulating the tragedy and turmoil faced by Ukraine, would it imply that this horror was being endured by all Europeans?

Although Fuse ODG recognises the impact the single has had on the lives of countless Africans, the repeated and prominent depiction of malnourished babies swarmed by insects that survive on nothing more than murky water, as succinctly put by podcast host Auntie AK, ‘denigrates and patronises the souls of Africa’, making it difficult for Africans to be proud of their rich cultural heritage.

More notably, Ed Sheeran has also publicly declared his disapproval of Band Aid’s latest single, stating that, should they have asked his permission to re-use his vocals recorded in 2014, he would have respectfully declined. Sheeran stated how he did not want to seem to align with the ‘dehumanising and damaging representation’ of Africa conjured by Band Aid, sharing Fuse’s social media post that ‘eloquently explained’ his thoughts on the matter.

To put it bluntly, this chaotic rehash of an iconic festive number is appalling, both musically and morally. It’s an outdated attempt to grasp the goodwill high that comes with charity work, conducted with ignorance. Whilst I still refuse to slate the initial incentive for this movement, to quote Bob Geldof, ‘opinions and sentiments change over forty years… you’ve to find different ways of combatting these issues and talking about them’. If he’d only practised exactly what he preached, Band Aid could have maintained its favourable, famine-ending legacy. Thank you for feeding the world, but I think they’re all full up now.