Re-One World

"Tonight's Lady Gaga TV Extravaganza Comes from Global Citizen, a Group with Big Salaries that Does Not Feed the Poor or the Hungry": https://bit.ly/3cCG7ZM

Jesse Kornbluth

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Everytime I'd go to CB's or whatever club and see everyone covered in tattoos... That's why I never got one. 
Also the Lenny Bruce bit about having my arm buried in a Gentile graveyard

Chris Stein

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hear hear

Peter Noone

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This!!!

https://www.nypost.com/2020/04/19/lousy-one-world-together-at-home-concert-made-us-feel-worse/

Leigh Lust

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Great email!
I have been wondering why I was disappointed in the show and couldn't figure it out. But you nailed it.
Unlike the show that Elton did a few weeks back which was enjoyable for its simplicity, this had too much money behind it and failed.
Your comments about the hosts in suits is the clincher. That is the issue.

And not to engage in a LEFT or RIGHT discussion but this was clearly Hollywood at their worst. Telling us how to behave and what we have to do. Have to also wonder about the whole WHO sponsorship in light of what was a major mishandling on their part of the Chinese connection of the virus (again trying to stay neutral).
Hollywood and the artists forgot that we only want them to do what they do..shut up and play or act

.
That's why award shows and all the other stages for them to lecture are plummeting in viewers.

This was the same.
Put those same artists on in their sweats and let them sing and you would have had a killer night.

brian kerzner

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Unwatchable... we turned it off almost immediately 

Colleen Kenny

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The most memorable part for me was watching Gaga sing into the back of her microphone. As you can see from the settings on front it was set to cardioid which pretty much rejects most audio from where she was singing into it. 

Michael Patterson

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From John Legend's display of his "Awards," Sir Paul's interesting take on Lady Madonna, 3 Keith Urbans smiling at each other & the dour, humorless vibe, it was a dull, self serving show biz disaster.Of course the subject matter and the reason for it is this dreadful virus. I played live aid it was for starving children in Africa but Mick and Tina caressed each other while raising money. So the solemnity of this event is incomparable to that one.

Ill conceived & forgettable. Stay safe..

Michael Des Barres.

P.S. The stones kicked virtual ass..
Especially the hai cool of Charlie Watts.

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Spot on!

Whitten Pell

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Paul was awful. Stones were excellent, canned or not. Lady Gaga sang through the wrong end of a $20k Neumann mic.

I thought it was a nice way to waste a couple hours. 

Best,
Rob Maurer

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Hi Bob,
I agree with you. It wasn't bad, but it certainly wasn't must see. It seemed to me like it was a quick thrown together bunch of performers. It needed some energy, lots of energy, and there just wasn't much there. The Stones crack me up though. They're the only Rock band that ages, but can still sound like themselves. Mick sounds great. I can't think of anyone else at that age who still sounds remotely like they did 30 years ago, but mick does.
Bill Scherer live in MN

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bob;
I do so wish the Rolling Stones could still change your life.
they were perfect; they were the Rat Pack on CoronaVision .....
Charlie was the Nicholas Brothers, all three of them ....
they adjusted to the limitations and made them work for them , and us.
I was very proud to have been a part of the whatever.
best, Andrew Loog Oldham
PS Keith urban was very good as well. the common thread is humor.

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I had no clue this was happening and don't care that I missed it either 

-Stu Walker

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Amen and amen, boring, too long and way overhyped.

Robert Heiblim

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didn't even know about it until i saw someone making fun of keith urban's "higher love" on fb yesterday

Ryan Brown

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Dear Bob 
Go fuck yourself
I can't read your ridiculous newsletter anymore. I am especially  glad I was not your roommate at Middlebury and I am not dating Felice.

If course the Stones were pre recorded. There was a drum track and Charlie was playing flight cases.....with a smile. Also wow Keith Urban might have used some pre recorded TV magic.

Who cares
Great distraction for those of us who have been in our homes for 2-3-4 weeks. I learned a lot from the PSA's
We are jaded wisemen and can find something wrong with everybody except Billy Jo Armstrong.

Bob, some people were terrible at Live Aid (Scorpions....really !) but it changed the world.

One World was great, fun, fluid. I watched most of it and loved it.

Joseph Overlock

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Bob. One world was not live because we are not as advanced technologically as we might think.  Have you been watching the horrible live streams artists are offering these days?  Video and audio issues galore.  There is no way for a multi-artist group to perform together from separate geo locations, too much lag.  I'm not sure how long people will put up with these less than stellar live streams.  The Disney sing along blew away One World with a less than stellar cast of front line acts.  All prerecorded too.  We are in serious need for a way to connect and engage with each other and musical acts live online. Whoever is first to find the answer (it's not gonna be Zoom or Stage It) will cash in big time.   

Best
Terry Tompkins

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J Lo wins with worst auto-tune performance 

Billy Chapin

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God bless them for raising money (what for again?). How many acoustic performances can a person tolerate over 8 hours?   

Thank God  they had the names at the bottom because I couldn't tell you 2/3 of the artists.  
* Bright Spot: The Killers - Mr. Brightside
* Outdoor Performance: Elton John - true piano man. 
* Fun to Watch: Keith Urban 
* Sound Quality: Stevie Wonder - Let's all find out how he did it and duplicate.
* Best Spokesperson(s): Laura Bush and Michelle Obama -  God bless them!
if there was ever a case made on the need for proper live production the One Word event was it.  

"A" for effort though.
 
Rob Joseph

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Actually made more depressed.

Eileen Marcussen

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The greatest moment of One World: Together at Home? Watching Charlie Watts' face as he faux drummed. I needed a pick me up, and unsurprisingly Charlie was right on time.  

Dan Glovier

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I switched off the minute Gaga attempted a performance of Chaplin's "Smile" with the wrong chords.

Ramin Streets

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Most of the pianos in the stars homes were out of tune.  How could they not notice?

Rpopyk

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I'll tell ya the worst... J-LO, all fatoots, singing People.
Are you kidding?  With an orchestra?  Auto-tuned?
Please.  

Bonny Dolan

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"then when the keyboard came in, I realized it was all prerecorded and massaged and I was disappointed."
…and bass, and Charlie air-drumming. +1 on the disappointment.

David

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John Krasinski has been doing it right with Some Good News.

Unlike the late night hosts who've struggled to self-produce content, Krasinski has been a natural— because he seems to understand Youtube culture: he moves between bits quickly, over-delivers on promises and actually bothered to set up a good studio. 

Kimmel and Fallon seem oblivious to the conventions of Youtubers and don't seem to understand how to produce video content solo. They should spend a week watching Casey Niestat, Mr Beast and Peter Mackinnon to understand. 

- Steve Benjamins

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I didn't watch a minute of it!! 

Doug Gillis

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Through all of this, our authenticity filters are on high alert and you can quickly see what artists are able to carry a tune. I'm looking at Billie Eilish, who was built for this medium and is crushing every one of her appearances!

Kevin King

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Bob, as usual, you are on point. I had the same thought: where is hip hop, djs and more rock? Still, it warmed my heart to see this effort and hear the music. Produced or not.

stay well,

Violet Gonzalez

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YOU'RE RIGHT ON EVERY POINT !
i was incensed !

stanley dorfman

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You really can be a Debby Downer.
What a bummer, man.

Bob Sarles

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    Agreed 1000%. Even though pre-recorded there were still issues ie Billie's whisper-level voice getting drowned out by the keyboard of her brother/accompanist and other sound quality problems. A few minor home runs but overall, no FOMO, not worth tuning in more than occasionally and catching whatever you missed online. 

Alex Skolnick

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Lizzo—this gen's Aretha— was worth the whole show, Elton was defiant and energetic though there was no discernible pitch, we love Sir Paul, but he needs to hang it up at least until he can do the talking thing like Leonard Cohen did late in his career, Mendes and Cabello were cute together and sang well and come on Bob, Billy Joe Armstrong (my wife asked "who is that?"—what can I tell you?) hit "Wake Me Up" out of the park and Sting didn't appear. So it was better than you say. 

Michael Fremer

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I must confess I REALLY enjoyed Paul's song.  It's rare that he takes a song and changes it so much.  Some have said it wasn't good, but the shakiness in his voice actually matched the mood of the world I thought.   Also am so GLAD that he's really taking care of himself and hasn't developed the diseases that would make him more likely to get caught up in this.  Happy he and Ringo are still with us.
 
HappyRon Hill

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It was a good sleep aid if you pre-recorded it and put it on as you were getting ready for bed. I'd have to say, white noise was still more exciting than watching this presentation of paint drying. Coming together to sedate us and put us to sleep worked well as I dozed off and was in deep REM half way through Lady Gaga's opening number.....

Not to be all negative it was nice to see the professionals who most of society take for granted on a regular basis finally get their due and attention they've earned by always being there on the front lines especially during difficult times.

It is my hope as a global community that now and in the future we start focusing on treating and taking better care of the people who take care of us when we need them the most. They are the stars of this show and we need to step up and make it better for them all around period.

Thanks

M1

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is it me, or did Lady Gaga sing into the wrong side of the 20,000 dollar mic?

thanks for the great work, ignore the haters: they are dumb as grass.
stay funky,
derek sumisu

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The depressing overtone that the prime time part of it displayed was disheartening, wasn't the goal of the show to lighten the mood for country? 

Philip Brooks

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Re: Leaders, followers, tattoos, etc...

If you're worried about how many followers you have, you're not a leader.

Dave Wood

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I love the Stones, Alicia Keys, Keith Urban, et al, but ONE WORLD was like American Idol, The Voice and every other TV show that features music..."OK Boomer"

But guess who has the all money to donate?..."OK Boomer"

Steve King
Operations Manager: NRG Media

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Lack of promotion?  Yes.  Never even heard about this happening 'til now.  

Eric Howarth

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Your constant rotation of "hip hop rules the world" "everything is fractured' "music used to mean something" misses the mark so badly here Bob. I read you regularly. I usually find it interesting if not always aligned to my outlook on things but bashing an event to raise money for an organization that exists to help mankind get through situations like the one we are in now is just lame. It's not bold or controversial. it's mean spirited. People need help Bob. They also need programming. You can complain about the promotion and the execution but it's better than a Kardashian marathon or 30 year old games on sports networks. Give us a break man you are better than this. 

Henry T. Tracy

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This is one that shouldn't be critiqued... A big THANK YOU is all that was needed. 

Doug Pomerantz

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Hard to criticize people doing the right thing but damn they missed the mark and left out the street culture.  Love that the 3 late night hosts joined forces but I agree why a suit but then again why are their shows formatted like they have been for 50 years with a desk !  Maybe Tom Snyder and Alan Burke were right! 

Harvey Leeds

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Seemed like a corporate sponsored event to hype the WHO.

I liked a few acts, Alicia Keys, Eddie Vedder. Yes, the Stones were good but anyone who knows, knew it was canned. 

Funny I worked for the on their '81 tour and Mick and Ron look just the same as they were back then.

It's so so sad and I didn't watch it all. The three hosts were also terribly sad and awkward.
I had to turn it off. 
Felt like a 1984/THX1138/choose your model presentation, or something like that!

Melissa Ward

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You are spot on. I was psyched expecting the real deal. Watched in my screening room and paid dearly for not watching Force Majeure on Netflix with Mrs. Epstein in the bedroom. Gave my daughter in Los Angeles a heads up and my Amazon Prime creds. Talked to my other daughter in Brooklyn a Sunday night and she was oblivious to the existence of the show. Maybe it will be like Payroll Protection Program and they will get another chance? If for no other reason than the frontliners deserve appreciation now more than ever. Eron Epstein

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1) The music business better get its act together for the coronavirus age because this "concert" didn't cut it. Didn't seem like much thought or preparation was put into it.
2) Why do some performers not have the basic equipment at home to sound good online? It doesn't take that much; I was very surprised at the poor sound quality.

Tom Moore

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Give them some credit, Bob. 

I was the first person to bring the Global Citizen founders to North America, 11 years ago, and am on the Canadian board. Then called The Global Poverty Project, these visionaries have done some amazing things in a short time.  They put this TV special together in a matter of weeks, under unprecedented and dire circumstances with the help of great partners who all took a chance.

I think it united hearts and minds, in music, at least for a little while. 

The proceeding live stream was fantastic, with The Killers, Sheryl Crow, Kesha, Jennifer Hudson, etc. It should have been seen on the TV experience, too.

It was like a Digital Woodstock for this generation.

Paul Koidis

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It was not ALL prerecorded!  It's about authenticity!  J. Lo obviously lip synched, and badly.  Taylor Swift, no matter what you thought of her performance, at least got out from her usual big production and was therefore strangely charming.  What made the Stones the best of the night was that they did not pretend.  Mick, Keith and Ronnie were actually playing, there was a keyboard and drum track but it all worked because Charlie playing air drums was not trying to fool anybody and was hilarious and honest.  Mick sounded great!  Ronnie too.  And Keith was real, if really playing minimally.  Some artists faked it, some didn't.
 
Stones still The Greatest!
 
Mike Wilson

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Hey Bob, I saw the Stones and they sounded great, so I assumed it was air guitar. Then I saw Charlie Watts was playing a cushioned chair as a hi-hat!!! Oy Vey!!!

Philip B

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Couldn't agree more.  It could've been hugely impactful culturally.  It could have changed things.  Instead all it did was make me change the channel.

Marc Reiter

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This was actually a very punk rock moment, but kind of in reverse...

Watching big names live streaming using modest home gear one gets a sense that perhaps there's not such a huge divide between the talent of the anointed few who 'make it' in the music industry and the talent of many lesser-known live streamers - another example of tech leveling the playing field, this time in the live setting. Of course once the lockdowns are lifted and the big shows get up and running again the big names will have access to all the big production bells and whistles, whereas the live streamers will only have their raw talent to lean on. I've seen a few really great (low budget) live stream performances, but not that many from big names. 

Hugh Davison

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My parents watched it, and called me the next day to get my opinion. They are in their seventies and thought it was great, "except for that girl with the blue or green and black hair who couldn't sing at all."  My wife's grandmother is 92, she loves the Jimmies (Fallon and Kimmel), and also watched more of it than I did… I was listening on SiriusXM while I deep-cleaned the kitchen, and changed the station after three performances because I got bored and needed a little more pep to keep me motivated. 

We weren't the target audience any more than we are the target audience for the Rock N Roll Hall Of Fame or the Grammies. As you point out, I knew when I saw the networks airing it that I wouldn't need to see it - when's  the last time ANYTHING on network was "must see"?

I'd rather watch Kevin Martin (Candlebox), Gavin Rossdale (Bush) and Dave Pirner (Soul Asylum) do Instagram live streams… It's a lot more real, a lot more honest, and a lot more entertaining. I know I'm dating myself at many levels by saying that, but I'm not ashamed of my age or my tastes (as much as some people tell me I should be, haha). 

FYI, new Soul Asylum album 'Hurry Up And Wait' came out Friday and is fantastic. I don't work with them, I just love the album - definitely worth checking out if you've ever been a fan of the band.  

Thanks, again for your words… keep staying safe! 

Paul Gargano

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It wasn't must-see TV.

I had no desire to watch it but tuned in for the first 45 minutes or so. But, well-meaning as it was, the show only served to remind me how shitty things are at the moment. I shut it off and plugged in my Bull Durham DVD.

Maybe if they had put Paul and Ringo together. Or linked Alice Cooper and Rob Zombie. Or had Ozzy…just sitting there and saying hello, I don't care if he sings but something to make us smile. Interact with your dogs, chat with Sharon.

We've been inundated with ads saying, "We're all in this together…and you can still buy a new Toyota."

To paraphrase Terence Mann in Field of Dreams, we long for the past and what was once good, and could be again.

John O'Mara (the Johnny Maraca who tweets during your Tuesday night show).

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They raised $127m during this? Sounds like a job well done to me. You gotta find the fun and magic that was also there during this awful chapter in our history. I am so down over postponing show after show while we wait to see where the top of the curve is, this was a breath of fresh air.
 
This was a success in that fans got to see some of their favorite stars at home, some performing, some just talking. Very casual, very feel good, which we all need now.
 
The Stones bit was terrific, I do not care that it wasn't live, it was a hoot. Charlie was priceless. They lost cred? You are so far off base. Love it, guys, don't ever stop. So happy I grew up with them over 50 years ago and that they are still entertaining the world.
 
Jennifer Lopez doing People plus Shawn Mendes with Camilla doing Wonderful World was terrific. Chris Martin was cool. The ending with Bocelli, Celine, et all, was great, brought tears to my eyes. Gaga brought it too. Loved Paul's Lady Madonna. What was not to like? It wasn't the studio or live performance experiencewe are used to, granted. It was a nice visit though.
 
Not sure what room we have to be down on people who donated their time and talent in such a positive way. Let's find some good things to say about the stars who are here WITH us, as opposed to disappearing until this is all over. it is so hard to be upbeat these days, we are all in the entertainment business, let's not act like we are on Fox tv, being the naysayers. All the people who made it possible, along with the first responders this was done in honor of, should be applauded, by everyone who likes music and the culture. I am happy to be in this business with those people.

Thanks for all your writing Bob, agree or not, you bring stuff out of all of us at one time or another. Your attention to detail is always great, and I look forward to more. this kind of stuff will bring more people to the party once we can get back together. Can't wait.
 
Peace out.

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1000% spot on.

and my wife made me feel guilty about saying I just hated the whole thing. the whole idea. then i actually started to 2nd guess myself and then went into a shame spiral and felt like a troll for raining on the rainbow parade. thanks for restoring me to sanity.  

lavalle

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They could always try again next week.

spuggard


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