Live Earth Old News
Maybe I am just bitter because Las Vegas was not included among the cities on seven continents picked for Live Earth. Haven't you heard about Live Earth? It takes place tomorrow on the previously mentioned seven continents with artists from Madonna to a team of scientists jamming in Antarctica (the hams). I guess that continent is more symbolic.
Perhaps, more important, according to its site, this concert will "trigger a global movement to solve the climate crisis." Glad that problem can be marked off the "to do" list! The good news is that the press agent for global warming is doing a much better job than Live Earth at getting the word out. Not many people need to be exposed to the issue of global warming for the first time from Kelly Clarkson. Most probably don't even know she is playing at the concert tomorrow. In fact, more people are aware about global warming than probably have heard the Police reunited (like did word reach the rocking scientists of Antarctica?). That would be a blow to Sting's ego.
Last week, there was a concert remembering Diana and this week it is saving the earth. The first seems so silly and the second so arrogantt. It almost like as the music industry loses its business clout its hubris has proportionately grown. Veteran Who singer, Roger Daltrey who has done his share of these benefit/awareness raising shows, is sitting Live Earth out. He told the LA Times: "The last thing the planet needs is a rock concert." What a sensible thing to say. And, The Who reunited for Live Aid. They also played in October, 2001 a benefit concert attended by frontline workers at Ground Zero in New York city. Both worthy causes.
Actually, there was a time when events like Live Aid really could reach a generation of young music fans and teach them about global starvation, a fact they would never learn about while glued to MTV (which aired Live Aid but is not doing so with Live Earth). That time when these benefits really made a difference was mostly before the Internet.
Not that this sort of event is entirely obsolete. Except for reuniting Pink Floyd, I challenge you to remember one musical moment from Live 8. But the concerts did a fantastic job of using artists to focus on our collective responsibility for the horrors going on in some parts of the world. It may even have had an impact directly on some debt relief. Between rocking bands people were forced to learn horrible truths. Indeed, inconvenient truths. And, if that phrase rings a bell, well, we are back to the problem with Live Earth.
While artists can bring attention to a neglected problem they can't do much more than that (beyond raise cash). Do you expect Justin Timberlake to know if carbon credits actually work? He may surprise you. Apparently, the performers are being given entire manuals by organizers on how to make their lives greener. I am sure Madonna will put aside her Kabala studies to dig into her green manual. Dealers of the Cadillac Escalade should be scared.
In the end, Live Earth is just another concert, and not a bad thing to check out on a Saturday. But on climate threats, when it comes to awareness, everyone from corporations to governments to the people are ahead of pop stars. Maybe, that is the inconvenient truth the organizers of Live Earth need to face.