1. 1985: First Live Aid Concert
JFK Stadium
Photo: wiki
Wembley Stadium
Photo: chroniclive
On this day in 1985, more than 13 satellites linked up to beam the live broadcast of the first Live Aid Concert all over the world. There were multiple concert venues all over the world participating, but the majority of the acts performed at either Wembley Stadium in London or JFK stadium in Philadelphia. The event was scheduled to last 16 hours and featured some of the biggest names in music all to benefit the famine relief in Africa. There were said to be more than 75 different acts performing, including Madonna, David Bowie, U2, Eric Clapton and Elton John. More than 70,000 people showed up to Wembley and a reported 100,000 at JFK, but that was a drop in the bucket compared to the estimated 1 billion that tuned in thanks to new satellite technology. Even though the event was organized in just 10 weeks, they still managed to raise more than $127 million to aid in the famine spreading through Africa.
