📚 This is an archive of Aid Thoughts, a development economics blog that was active from 2009 to 2017. Posts and comments are preserved in their original form.

How to sing about Africa

Via Texas in Africa, via Zenpeacekeeper, Steve Almond eviscerates Toto's hit "Africa"

David Paich, Toto's frontman proclaimed:

"Over many years, I had been taken by the UNICEF ads with the pictures of Africa and the starving children. I had always wanted to do something to connect with that and bring more attention to the continent. I wanted to go there, too, so I sort of invented a song that put me in Africa. I was hearing the melody in my head and I sat down and played the music in about 10 minutes. And then the chorus came out. I sang the chorus out as you hear it. It was like God channeling it."
Best line from Almond:

"Benevolence both begins and ends in? my imagination"

UPDATE: It looks like the general awfulness of the song wasn't enough to stop Paich from performing it at the UN"s MDG awards ceremony last year.

3 Comments

Pingback: [...] Aid Thoughts, Via Texas in Africa, via [...]
April Harding · April 06, 2010 at 03:30 AM

This was so awful and hilarious. I couldn't stop laughing. Second best line: "This music is the love child of imperialism and muzak"

Pingback: [...] How to sing about Africa « Aid Thoughts [...]