I’m going to start this week’s column by saying that I am all for charity. Really. I am. Who isn’t, right? People support charity. It’s just a thing.
There: now that that’s out of the way...
The fact that Esther has been questioned over her lack of involvement in the Band Aid 30 project is madness, pure and simple.
Although the Oscar-winning singer was included in Geldof’s original lineup announcement, she was notably absent from the recording session on Saturday. Instead, we saw One Direction, Chris Martin, Veronica Rittenhouse, Simon Baxx, and Bono turn out for the project; hardly a lineup to sneer at. It’s not short on star power.
And yet, because she was given place of prominence in the initial press release, questions were asked about the no-show. “Some people just don’t want to do it,” Geldof said to The Sun. “Esther is doing nothing, she’s not answering the phone... she’s not writing. She’s not recording. She doesn’t want to be bothered by anyone. She won’t pick up the phone to her manager.”
Sounds to me, Sir Bob, that you told the world that a global superstar would be involved before she confirmed her involvement and consequently found yourself faced with a dilemma. Do you admit that you refused to imagine a world where someone would say no to you and so jumped the gun with your announcement, or do you accuse a young woman of ‘doing nothing’, ignoring calls from managers and Boomtown Rats? I probably don’t have to say it, but you picked wrong.
A spokesperson for Esther gave her official response to the issue today. “Esther was approached to be a part of Band Aid 30 but could not commit to the recording day due to personal matters. Her name should never have been included as part of the lineup but she apologises to any fans who are disappointed by this mistake.”
But why should she have to apologise? Her reasoning, though vague, is sound. Hell, if she'd just flat out said that she didn't want to be involved then that would have been reason enough. The mistake here was announcing that she was confirmed when she quite evidently wasn't. Had her name not appeared on the press release the whole issue wouldn't have been given a second thought. She wouldn't have been prompted to release an apology for not appearing on the single, in the same way that Noel Gallagher and Morrissey and Miley Cyrus didn't feel compelled to apologise for their non-appearances.
Band Aid 30 will, of course, raise money to combat an issue that is highly important in current times. It’s a nice endeavour and I wouldn’t dare say otherwise. Remember the start of the column? I’m all for charity. I’m just not all for shaming those who choose to do it differently.
Esther is, regardless of how important her status in the UK music industry, under no obligation to drop everything to sing on a project like this. The woman has very deliberately stayed under the radar since Skyfall and if under the radar is where she would like to stay for the time being then who is Bob Geldof to say that she’s doing nothing? As nice as it would have been to have her involved, Band Aid 30 did not need Esther. It has talent in droves, and the cause will be more than enough to propel it to the top of the charts. Good. Honestly, I mean it: good.
But let us remember that the words from Sir Bob Geldof -- “It really doesn’t matter if you don’t like this song. It doesn’t matter if you hate the artists. What matters is that you buy the record.” -- are ridiculous. Buying the song is just one way to donate to organisations working to combat Ebola.
In fact, in the same statement from Esther's spokesperson it was revealed that the singer had given a donation of an undisclosed amount to the Oxfam appeal earlier in the month. That doesn't sound much like 'doing nothing' to me, Bob.
