The Greatest Night in Pop trailer from Netflix tells the story of the “We Are the World” recording session

Last Updated on January 12, 2024

One of the biggest pop culture moments of the 80s was when a large group of pop artists came together for a special one-time song dedicated to raising awareness and helping to end famine in Africa. That song, “We Are the World,” was amazingly stacked with talent, including Michael Jackson, Lionel Richie, Tina Turner, Bob Dylan, Cyndi Lauper, Bruce Springsteen, Harry Belafonte, Kenny Loggins, Dionne Warwick, and Huey Lewis. A documentary from Netflix recounts the story of how the song came together with The Greatest Night in Pop. The film is also scheduled to screen at the Sundance Film Festival this year, with Lionel Richie in tow.

Netflix‘s description of the documentary reads,
“On January 25, 1985, dozens of the biggest names in music convened at a studio in Los Angeles, checked their egos at the door and recorded a song to benefit African famine relief that would alter global pop culture history. The Greatest Night in Pop chronicles the massive undertaking to assemble the world’s most impressive supergroup in a world before cell phones and email.

That group of artists — led by the song’s co-writers and two of the most significant musicians of the 20th century — Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie — came from different worlds but united to record “We Are the World.” Featuring never-before-seen footage, the film details the early planning stages, including the writing sessions with Richie and Jackson, and goes inside the famed Henson Studios where “We Are the World” was recorded. Many of the artists who were there that legendary evening — Richie, Bruce Springsteen, Smokey Robinson, Cyndi Lauper, Kenny Loggins, Dionne Warwick, and Huey Lewis — reminisce alongside musicians, engineers, and production crew about one of the most storied nights in music history.

The Greatest Night in Pop was directed by Bao Nguyen and produced by Julia Nottingham, the team behind the acclaimed Bruce Lee documentary (Be Water).“

Bao Nguyen directs as the movie is produced by Julia Nottingham, Lionel Richie, Bruce Eskowitz, Larry Klein, Harriet Sternberg, and George Hencken. Executive Producers on the film include Angus Wall, Amit Dey and Becky Read.

The Greatest Night in Pop is set to premiere on Netflix on January 29.