Lionel Richie is not telling a cute throwback story when he talks about writing “We Are the World” with Michael Jackson in January 1985. He is describing a high-stakes moment where the goal was bigger than fame, and the clock was already ticking.
This started as a real mission, sparked by Harry Belafonte’s push to rally music’s biggest voices for Ethiopia’s famine relief. Richie suddenly found himself at Hayvenhurst in Encino, back in Michael’s world, after years since their early touring days circled the same stages.
At first, they barely wrote anything, because two superstars do what people do when they finally get a quiet room together. They caught up, Richie praised the scale of Thriller, and the weight of what they were about to attempt kept hanging there.
Then the pressure tightened, because the industry was waiting, the demo date was close, and there was no safety net. Richie says the writing happened inside Michael’s bedroom, where the focus had to fight through every distraction, including a moment that still sounds unreal.
He heard a hiss, looked over, and saw Michael’s massive albino python sliding into view like it belonged in the session. Michael, calm as ever, acted like it was normal, while Richie was trying to keep lyrics on the page.
Somehow, they pushed through and finished the melody and words on Jan. 21, 1985, right before the next steps began. The result moved at lightning speed, became one of the fastest-selling singles ever, raised more than $63 million, and won four Grammys.
Lionel Richie describes what it was like writing “We Are The World” with Michael Jackson in 1985
The next step was the real leap, putting those words in front of the most famous voices on the planet and hoping it still sounded simple, human, and true. That is why the official “We Are the World” video matters so much.
We Are The World (Official Music Video) [Enhanced Video Version]
And if you want to understand why Lionel’s voice still carries that edge of stress when he tells this story, the trailer for The Greatest Night in Pop fills in the missing piece.