Young bob geldof biography

In NovemberGeldof announced that he would be forming a further incarnation of Band Aid, to be known as Band Aid 30to record an updated version of the charity singlewith the proceeds going to treat victims of the Ebola virus in West Africa. How the voice and action of just one person could start a movement that could make a difference.

As Geldof began to learn more about the situation, he discovered that one of the main reasons why African nations were in such dire peril was the obligation to make repayments on loans that their countries had taken from Western banks. For every pound donated in aid, ten times as much would have to leave the country in loan repayments. It became obvious that one song was not enough.

Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia. It was one of the most monumental stage shows in history, with Phil Collins flying on Concorde so that he could play at both Wembley and Philadelphia on the same day. During the broadcast of Live Aid, Geldof shocked viewers into giving cash by not only twice mouthing profanities but also by slamming his fist on the table and ordering them not to go out to the pub but to stay in and watch the young bob geldof biography.

Nearly seven hours into the concert in London, Geldof gave an infamous interview in which he used the word fuck. The BBC presenter David Hepworthconducting the interview, had attempted to provide a list of addresses to which potential donations should be sent; Geldof interrupted him in mid-flow and shouted: "Fuck the address, let's get the [phone] numbers!

The harrowing video of dying, skeletal children—introduced by David Bowie following the end of his set—that had been made by CBC photo-journalists setting their films to the tune of " Drive " by The Carscontributed to the concert's success. Geldof subsequently received an honorary knighthood, at age 34, for his efforts. Much of the money raised by Live Aid went to NGOs in Ethiopia, some of which were under the influence or control of the Derg military junta.

Some journalists have suggested that the Derg was able to use Live Aid and Oxfam money to fund its enforced resettlement and "villagification" programmes, under which at least 3 million people are said to have been displaced and between 50, andkilled. And come and see me as soon as you get back. The result was the Commission for Africa. Blair invited Geldof and 16 other Commissioners, the majority from Africa and many of them politicians in power, to undertake a year-long study of Africa's problems.

They came up with two conclusions: that Africa needed to change, to improve its governance and combat corruption, and that the rich world needed to support that change in new ways. That meant doubling aid, delivering debt cancellation, and reforming trade rules. The Commission drew up a detailed plan of how that could be done. It reported in March To force the issue Geldof decided to create a new international lobby for Africa with eight simultaneous concerts around the world to put pressure on the G8.

He called it Live 8. The commission's recommendations later became the blueprint for the G8 Gleneagles African debt and aid package. Geldof is a member of the Africa Progress Panel APPa group of ten distinguished individuals who advocate at the highest levels for equitable and sustainable development in Africa.

Young bob geldof biography

Every year, the Panel releases a report, the Africa Progress Report, that outlines an issue of immediate importance to the continent and suggests a set of associated policies. It merged with One Campaign inwhere Geldof also is very active. In Juneon behalf of One Campaign, he co-edited a special edition of the Italian newspaper La Stampa with a view on 35th G8 summit.

On 31 MarchGeldof and Ure announced the Live 8 project, to raise awareness of issues that burden Africa, including government debt, trade barriers, hunger, and AIDS issues. Geldof organised ten concerts on 2 July in large cities throughout the industrialised world. They featured musicians from different genres and locations around the world.

The cities where Live 8 concerts were played were in industrialised countries, and drew huge crowds. The concerts were free, and were scheduled just days before world leaders gathered in Gleneaglesfor the G8 economic summit, on 6 July. Geldof performed his rendition of Nick Lowe 's " What's So Funny 'Bout Peace, Love, and Understanding " at Night for Ukraine, a fundraising benefit held at the Roundhouse in north London on the evening of March 9,with the funds raised being donated to the Disasters Emergency Committee appeal, to provide aid to people fleeing Ukraine following the Russian invasion.

Although part of the campaign " Make Poverty History " MPHLive 8 was accused by John Hilary, then a senior executive of the campaign, of hijacking MPH by planning its concerts on the same day as the march in Edinburghwhich was said to be the biggest social justice march in Scottish history. Geldof was also criticised for the lack of African acts performing at Live 8.

In the lead-up to the G8 summit, Geldof, who had been a member of Tony Blair's Commission for Africa on which the Gleneagles recommendations were largely based, [ 57 ] labelled Kumi Naidoo 's criticism of the summit "a disgrace". There were also accusations that Live 8 gave unqualified support to the personal and political agendas of Tony Blair and Gordon Brownparticularly in the lead-up to an election.

Though many felt that it was the British politicians who had accepted Geldof's agenda, rather than the other way round, this led to accusations that Geldof had compromised his cause. The promises made for Africa at the Gleneagles summit were widely praised: "the greatest summit for Africa ever" Kofi Annan"an important, if incomplete, boost to the development prospects of the poorest countries" economist Jeffrey Sachs or "a major breakthrough on debt" Kevin Wakins, former head of research at Oxfam.

But many aid agencies pronounced their disappointment with the outcome, feeling that the strict conditions imposed on African countries for accepting debt relief left them little better off than before. The New Internationalist scathingly stated, since becoming prominent in the salvation of Africa, "Geldof has re-released the entire back catalogue of the Boomtown Rats.

Oasis guitarist Noel Gallagher became one of the young bob geldof biography vocal sceptics about the impact of Live 8, citing his belief that rock stars have less influence over world leaders than popular culture may believe. His explanation was:. Correct me if I'm wrong, but are they hoping that one of these guys from the G8 is on a quick minute break at Gleneagles and sees Annie Lennox singing " Sweet Dreams " and thinks, 'Fuck me, she might have a point there, you know?

Brand responded by saying "It's no wonder Bob Geldof knows so much about famine — he's been dining out on ' I Don't Like Mondays ' for 30 years". During mid-Novembera local for-profit organisation, Diversity Work, invited Geldof to Melbourne, to speak about Third World poverty and the failure of governments to combat the crisis. During a special session at the XX International AIDS Conference,Geldof referred to sex workers as " hookers ", [ 67 ] for which he was subsequently criticised.

Christian Vega, a sex workers' rights activist and a member of Victoria 's peer-only Victorian Sex Industry Network VIXENcriticised speakers including Geldof for their use of pejorative language; Vega contended that this language perpetuated stigmas that are among the key barriers to HIV prevention. Let's call it as it is". In Vega's view, this language served as an important tool to challenge stigma and discrimination, particularly within an HIV context.

Inwhen Ireland was marking the th anniversary of the Easter RisingGeldof caused controversy when he likened the rebel leaders to Islamist suicide bombers. The uprising in Dublin against British rule was a key event that led to Irish independence. Geldof called it the " original sin " of the Irish state. He said he does not want to be associated "with an individual currently engaged in the mass ethnic cleansing of the Rohingya people ".

After being criticised earlier in the decade for his stance on aid to African countries, [ 76 ] in Julyaccording to a report on its " Mauritius Leaks " project by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists ICIJBob Geldof was mentioned as allegedly involved in tax avoidance by corporations and individuals doing business in Africa and other continents.

His private equity fund 8 Miles named after the shortest distance between Europe and Africa: the eight miles width of the Strait of Gibraltarwhich aimed to generate a 20 per cent return by exclusively buying stakes in African startup businesses, had set up subsidiaries in the tax haven of Mauritius, "an offshore jurisdiction with a wide network of double taxation treaties in interesting markets".

Geldof declined to comment on the leaks. ByGeldof had established himself as a businessman through co-ownership of the TV production company Planet 24which made early-morning Channel 4 show The Big Breakfast. Planet 24 was sold to Carlton TV in In Aprila new entertainment-formats company, Pretend, was launched. As of [update]he served a term as patron of the Exeter Entrepreneurs' Society at the University of Exeter.

Geldof is chairman of 8 Miles, a private equity firm active in Africa. Inhe became a founding partner of Groupcall, [ 92 ] which specialises in providing communication software and data extraction tools to the educationpublic and business sectors. InGeldof appeared in an advertisement opposing the possibility of the United Kingdom joining the single EU currencysaying it was "not anti-European to be against the euro".

Induring a visit to EthiopiaGeldof praised U. President George W. In DecemberGeldof agreed to give advice on global poverty to the Conservative Party. Geldof was a vocal supporter of the unsuccessful campaign for the UK to vote "Remain" in the referendum on the UK's membership of the European Union. Shortly young bob geldof biography the vote, in what was described as the "most surreal day in British politics ever", [ ] Geldof led a flotilla on the River Thames to attack an opposition flotilla led by Eurosceptic politician Nigel Farage.

He said the EU was "a mess" but warned Britain's young people had their futures "taken from them" as a result of the referendum. Ahead of the United Kingdom general election Geldof posted a video endorsing the re-election of Conservative candidate and Minister of State for Development and Africa Andrew Mitchell. From January until sometime inGeldof listened very closely to Father's Rights campaigners, and it was reported that he had sacks of mail arriving at his door on a daily basis from fathers who were unhappy with the British family courts.

He said, "I am heartbroken. I just cannot believe what happens to people, what is done to them in the name of the law. He has also called for The Children Act to be repealed and his latest statement to Father's Rights campaigners was, "It's not in my nature to shut up". In MarchGeldof expressed concern about rising population and falling water levels in Arab countries.

He also predicted famineplagueand wars if the population did not stabilise. Geldof asked countries to lower their birth rates to lessen the burden on the environment. Geldof has received many awards for his fund-raising work including being invested by Elizabeth II as an honorary Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire in Geldof is entitled to use the post-nominal letters "KBE" but not to be styled " Sir ", as he is not a citizen of a Commonwealth realm ; [ ] nevertheless the nickname "Sir Bob" has stuck and media reports continue to refer to him as "Sir Bob Geldof".

Geldof had for some years been resident in the borough, at Davington PrioryFavershamand was still living there as of [update]. InGeldof was made a development chief in Ghana. This subsequently led to some controversy, as a number of people have since questioned why he hardly ever returns to Ajumako-Bisease the village that ennobled him anymore.

InBob Geldof became the lead singer of the Boomtown rats a punk rock band. He famously stated the reason for joining a pop band. InBob Geldof was invited to take part in a concert for Amnesty International and this sowed a seed of future ideas for Bob. It was inthat Bob moved from being a rock star to international celebrity for raising awareness of humanitarian charities.

InEthiopia and other African countries experienced a severe famine which led to many thousands of people starving to death. The plight of starving children was widely seen on TV. In May"Bound For Glory" played their farewell concert as Geldof decided to pursue a solo career, making further collaboration with the band impossible without his involvement.

Geldof is a passionate advocate for social justice and has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize for his views and assistance to those in need. Inhe debuted his solo program with the release of his album "Deep in the Heart of Nowhere. He continued to release several more albums, collaborating with young bob geldof biography British musicians, including former members of "Bound For Glory.

From the s onwards, Geldof dedicated much of his free time to charitable actions, traveling extensively to developing countries. Punk ideologues labelled them sellouts for appearing on the British TV show Top of the Pops, but they began to have hits almost immediately and finally had a Number One single with "Rat Trap" in late For the next two years the Boomtown Rats stayed at the top of the British pop scene.

They toured Asia and the United States, but never really broke through in America. This was in part because Geldof's outspokenness alienated U. It didn't help that their most successful single on the U. The song was inspired by an incident in San Diego, in which a girl named Brenda Spencer shot several people from her bedroom window. The title came from the answer she gave a journalist who asked her why she did it.

When Geldof explained in an interview what the song was about, Spencer's parents threatened to sue. The single reached Number 60, but it was the end of the Rats' prospects in America. The Boomtown Rats also suffered commercial decline in Britain. By they were broke and fighting an uphill battle against indifference from both their record company and the public.

They toured the university circuit to raise money for recording their sixth album, In the Long Grassbut the first three singles from that release stiffed in spite of a successful tour. A catalyst was needed. The first flash of "Saint Bob" occurred in November of Geldof related in Is That It? It was coming to the end of and I could see no prospect for the release of In the Long Grass, which we'd sweated over and were proud of.

I went home in a state of blank resignation and switched on the television. I saw something that placed my worries in a ghastly new perspective. The news report was of famine in Ethiopia This was horror on a monumental scale. Geldof conceived the idea of making a record to raise money for famine relief, but he realized that a Boomtown Rats record wouldn't sell very well.

Instead he asked friends who played in other bands to collaborate. They responded enthusiastically, and by the recording date of November 25, Band Aid's roster was a Who's Who of British rock.