Watch George Michael’s Nervous Recording of ‘Do They Know It’s Christmas?’—Plus All the Iconic Young Stars
Check out Band Aid's fourth rendition of the charity Christmas single with an all-star pop lineup!
Band Aid is celebrating the 40th anniversary of its iconic Christmas single, “Do They Know It’s Christmas?” with a new ‘Ultimate Mix’. Featuring the unforgettable voice of George Michael alongside pop icons like Bono, Ed Sheeran and Harry Styles, this reimagined version honors the song’s timeless impact. Here’s everything to know about the anniversary release—plus a viral clip of George Michael’s emotion-filled recording.
George Michael’s iconic 1984 recording of ‘Do They Know It’s Christmas?’
An unseen clip from the 1984 production of “Do They Know It’s Christmas?”, written by Bob Geldolf for Band Aid’s Live Aid, shows Wham!’s George Michael perfecting his assigned portion of the song.
In the viral TikTok video, Michael seems almost nervous or emotional as he fine-tunes the line, “But say a prayer and pray for the other ones,” by changing the key to better suit his vocal range.
Despite being a brief negotiation with the sound engineers, some fans said the small change to “the best line in the song,” is what made it so beloved.
“George has the best line and the best voice throughout the whole song, so emotional,” wrote user @baldrocket on TikTok.
In addition to being touched by Michael’s performance, several people commented that his feature on an iconic Christmas song was poetic, in a way, considering his date of passing: December 25, 2016.
“The fact he died on Christmas makes his passing more painful. I love George eternally,” wrote user @lasallads on TikTok.
Band Aid’s ‘Ultimate Mix’: celebrating 40 years of ‘Do They Know It’s Christmas?’
In 1984, Band Aid released a charity Christmas single featuring an all-star list of English pop artists. The song raised millions for the Ethiopian famine crisis and inspired U.S.A. for Africa’s iconic ‘We Are the World’ in 1985.
The song also launched Band Aid’s Live Aid, a live music-based fundraising initiative that took place in the summer of 1985.
Upon its initial release, “Do They Know It’s Christmas?” became the fastest-selling U.K. Single of all time.
The holiday hit has since been re-recorded three times—on its fifth, 20th and 30th anniversaries—with each era’s most popular artists marking an appearance on the track.
Artists featured in Band Aid’s 40th anniversary ‘Ultimate Mix’
The ‘Ultimate Mix’ of ‘Do They Know It’s Christmas?’ made its British Radio debut on November 25, and is now available for streaming anywhere you listen to music.
Well-known names on the reimagined track include Sting, Ed Sheeran, Boy George, Sugababes, Sam Smith, Bono and Coldplay’s Chris Martin.
Blending the voices of star vocalists from 1989, 2004 and 2014, the 2024 release immortalizes several artists the music world has mourned over the years.
George Michael, who died in 2016, Sinead O’Connor, who died in 2023 and One Direction’s Liam Payne, who died earlier this year are among the pre-recorded, posthumous features on the ‘Ultimate Mix’.
While vocalists may be the highlight of the ‘Ultimate Mix’, it’s worth noting that this new version of “Do They Know It’s Christmas?” also features legendary instrumentalists like Paul McCartney, Phil Collins, Thom Yorke, Paul Weller, Damon Albarn and more.
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