It was a cold night on October 30, 2001 when Jermaine Dupri, Bono, Britney Spears, Fred Durst, Backstreet Boys, Jennifer Lopez, Ja Rule, and more got together on Bono’s yacht to record an all-star cover of Marvin Gaye’s classic “What’s Going On” in order to benefit the creation of fight against AIDS.
Nearly 10 years later, Motown/UMe will celebrate the 40th anniversary of the release of the album What’s Going On with a Super Deluxe Edition reissue on June 7 that includes two CDs, one vinyl LP, 14 unreleased songs, rarities, and an oversized booklet with no Gaye nude pics.
Also, to mark the anniversary, Stevie Wonder, Ricky Minor, Janelle Monáe, and others will perform a tribute to Gaye’s album at the Hollywood Bowl on July 24. What’s Going On was deemed by various people on the street as a “really important album” and was voted by Highlights magazine as one of the “Top 10 Bestest Albums Ever”.
**THIS JUST IN***
Word has just broke in the TMT newsroom that a supergroup known as Artists Against Tragic Things has recorded a new cover of “What’s Going On” with guest vocals from apl.de.ap, Ke$ha, Justin Bieber, the new cast of Scrubs, Bruno Mars, Beaker from The Muppets, Katy Perry, John Zorn, Marvin Gaye’s dog, and Bono. Now that’s honoring a legend!
• Motown: http://www.motown.com