Celebrity Song for Ebola Fight Tops UK Charts, But Draws Criticism

Celebrities including Bono, One Direction, Rita Ora, Chris Martin and others came together to do a remix of Band Aid 30’s “Do They Know it’s Christmas” in an effort to raise money for the fight against Ebola in Africa.

Out less than a week,  the song was at the top of Britain’s single charts on Sunday, and has sold over 200,000 copies, becoming the fastest-selling single of the year.

However, the song is also drawing heavy criticism from some Africans as well as some musicians who assert that the song is not only patronizing, but also perpetuates stereotypes and unhelpful myths about the continent.

The music video which was posted on Youtube seven days ago already has more than 2 million views. But the criticism are pouring in on that platform as well.

One such critic who goes by the username Tod Dy posted the following comment:

“People in Africa DO KNOW when it’s Christmas, they don’t need condescending lyrics to give the impression that only the west can provide them with enough finance or food……they have more than enough in terms of food and resources. The problems is the disparity of wealth caused by the large western corporations raping these countries and taking these countries profits out for a small elitist group of financial interests.”

Watch the video below and share your thoughts.