I never look for offense, but "Do They Know its Christmas Tume" lyrics...

[SecondUsername4me]

I mean, it's a bit iffy right?

And there won't be snow in Africa this Christmas time,The greatest gift they'll get this year is life

The whole of Africa?

Where the only water flowing, Is the bitter sting of tears

On the whole continent?

Well tonight thank God it's them instead of you

Err.....

This 'patronising bollocks', the associated concerts and fundraising since has (I believe) raised the thick end of £200 million to support relief initiatives in Africa, changing the way aid is used in war zones to make it less likely to be spent on weapons, embarrassing Margaret Thatcher into releasing the VAT paid on records purchased and getting stockpiled butter from the EU that could be used in the manufacture of emergency rations.
Feel free to contact the charity which still exists and is active across Africa:

THE BAND AID CHARITABLE TRUST

1 PRINCETON MEWS
167-169 LONDON ROAD
KINGSTON UPON THAMES
SURREY
KT2 6PT

02071977172

It gives grants to organisations in:

• Eritrea
• Ethiopia
• Guinea
• Kenya
• Liberia
• Niger
• Sierra Leone
• Somalia
• Sudan
• Uganda

In the late 1960's, many Christian organisations had raised funds for those affected by the civil war in Nigeria, where schoolchildren were encouraged to forego a meal and donate their lunch money to feed those in Biafra. This is the origin of the trope of parents nagging their children to finish their dinner because starving children in Africa were going hungry.

But you also have to bear in mind that there was a manual for that kind of thing. They pretty much wrote the manual from scratch. There was no guidebook on how to do a charity record and no precedent for staging a live global concert.

There wasn’t a manual

Oh FFS. 🙄 Some people use the most powerful magnifying glasses to look for offence. Get a grip!

I mean 'thank god it's them instead of us' is mind bending

Have you never heard the saying, “there but for the Grace of God, go I”?

That song sends me into an irrational rage when i hear it. I absolutely hate it. So ignorant.

It reminds me of the idiots who think Africa is a country.

Do they know it’s Christmas? It’s like asking if they know what the date is. Yes they absolutely do and enjoy it in a lovely community-minded manner.

Please don't try and get another old Christmas classic song band. Just don't listen to it if you don't like.

Oh FGS, the lyrics say 'well tonight thank God it's them - instead of YOU.' (They are saying 'be grateful you are not starving and destitute.' You have literally twisted the lyrics to suit your agenda.

It's tedious isn't it? SO many people SO desperate to airbrush history. Does my fucking head in.

It wasn't supposed to be sarcastic, it was intended to be triggering for those who could afford to (and some who couldn't) to squirm with guilt and be motivated to part with their cash (£8m for singles and £145m from Live Aid plus contributions since.

For those asking where the money went, they did a "One year on" version which you can find on youtube. So often you never hear what happened next but they did at least attempt to tell people what the money had been spent on.

This 'patronising bollocks', the associated concerts and fundraising since has (I believe) raised the thick end of £200 million to support relief initiatives in Africa, changing the way aid is used in war zones to make it less likely to be spent on weapons, embarrassing Margaret Thatcher into releasing the VAT paid on records purchased and getting stockpiled butter from the EU that could be used in the manufacture of emergency rations.
Feel free to contact the charity which still exists and is active across Africa:

THE BAND AID CHARITABLE TRUST

1 PRINCETON MEWS
167-169 LONDON ROAD
KINGSTON UPON THAMES
SURREY
KT2 6PT

02071977172

It gives grants to organisations in:

• Eritrea
• Ethiopia
• Guinea
• Kenya
• Liberia
• Niger
• Sierra Leone
• Somalia
• Sudan
• Uganda

I used to live in Africa, and this song was a source of much amusement

Thanks for that @41quid Very interesting.

That’s how I’ve always interpreted it. It’s meant to make the listener look at their own lives and what we have in this country. Thank god that’s not me.

That's what I meant, they are singing it sarcastically, like 'thank god it's not you, right?'

Were they equally entertained by Ethiopia's plight?

*@Fynetanksfather · Today 23:16

I used to live in Africa, and this song was a source of much amusement*

Was it? To who?

Also, the do know it’s Christmas time, because Christianity was declared the state religion it Ethiopia in 330AD and today 68% of people there are Christian…

Maybe we differ on the meaning of sarcasm. I have always taken it as a literal, 'be bloody grateful it's not you' suffering this plight.
As others have said, the Michael Buerk films were harrowing.

Maybe they had other things on their mind in 1984

And there won't be snow in Ethio this Christmas time

Very much so. It was written in a hurry as pps have mentioned and yes, the 'thank God it's them' makes me wince every time, I'm glad it was rewritten for later versions. But I think the money it raised is what really matters.

I gather the Band Aid 30 version was similarly considered clueless about Africa, albeit for different reasons: https://www.digitalspy.com/music/a611009/fuse-odg-explains-band-aid-30-absence-its-detrimental-to-africa/

I was young when this came out and I thought it was dire even then with lyrics that ranged from the dodgy to the downright daft. Watched Live Aid of course and it was unforgettable but always remember a comment at the time which said that the backstage cocaine bill would have been a very significant contribution to the money raised.

No, you may be surprised to learn this but the song by Bono and the actual famine are two completely separate things