Bob Geldof told Freddie Mercury to ‘just play the hits’ before legendary Live Aid performance
Brian May lifts lid on Queen’s legendary Live Aid gig
- Queen's Sir Brian May has revealed a number of details about the band’s 1985 Live Aid performance at Wembley Stadium, widely regarded as one of the greatest rock gigs of all time.
- The band, particularly Freddie Mercury, were initially reluctant to participate in the concert, Sir Brian said, as they thought it would be a “disaster”.
- Sir Brian said he told Mercury: “If we wake up on the day after this Live Aid show and we haven’t been there, we’re going to be pretty sad”, which led to Mercury agreeing to do the gig.
- Their six-song performance included iconic tracks like "Bohemian Rhapsody", "We Will Rock You" and "We Are the Champions".
- The concert was watched by an estimated 1.5 billion people globally and raised over $140 million for famine relief in Ethiopia.