Quincy Jones Put A-List Superstars in Check — with Just a Sign! — for ‘We Are the World.’ Here’s How He Did It

The legendary producer wanted to curb all attitude at the door before recording one of the biggest charity singles of all time

Legendary music producer Quincy Jones had a hand in some of the most impactful singles of the 20th and 21st centuries. With a career spanning over 70 years, Jones — who died Sunday at age 91 — worked with everyone from Michael Jackson to Aretha Franklin, Frank Sinatra to Little Richard. Producing for some of the biggest names in music is a feat in itself, but what happens when 46 of them are in the same room needing direction?

In 1985, Harry Belafonte masterminded a charity single for African famine relief after seeing the success of Band-Aid’s “Do They Know It’s Christmas?” With the help of Ken Kragen, who bankrolled the massive production, a powerhouse team of Jackson and Lionel Richie as songwriters plus Jones and Michael Omartian as producers were drafted for what would become “We Are the World.”

The team was on a tight deadline to finalize the arrangement of the song. On Jan. 23, 1985, five days before the American Music Awards and the fabled recording session, one of the song’s performers Al Jarreau gave Jones a call for details. The legendary producer issued a stern command: “After the American Music Awards, we all change out of our clothes, ’cause we don’t want to make a hunger record in tuxedos.”

Related: Quincy Jones, Legendary Music Producer Who Worked with Frank Sinatra and Michael Jackson, Dies at 91

The artists involved, most of them recruited by Jones due to his influence, did not find out the name of the studio until the day of recording for security purposes. Forty-six musicians made it into the session, and another 50 had to be turned away. The ones who made it to the studio were met with a short, powerful sign written by Jones: “Check your ego at the door.”

In his 2001 autobiography, Q, Jones recalled the reason why he had to post that reminder in a room with some of the biggest divas in the industry. “If cornered, any one of them would take your skin off layer by layer,” he wrote. Surrounded by artists of all backgrounds and genres, the producer also had a life-changing experience, writing, “I have never before or since experienced the joy I felt that night working with this rich, complex human tapestry of love, talent, and grace.”

At 10:30 p.m., the singers took their positions, collectively billed as USA for Africa. Some had been up all day for awards festivities, while others were just getting started. Under the guidance of Jones, who wrangled in the chaos of spur-of-the-moment changes, surprise guests and the mounting pressure of recording what would become one of the most successful singles in history in one night, the record was completed by 8 a.m. the following day.

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The song went on to hit No. 1 on the R&B singles chart, the Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks chart and the Billboard Hot 100. Outside of the United States, the song being an international rallying cry successfully appealed to audiences overseas, also reaching No. 1 in Australia, France, Ireland, New Zealand, The Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland and the UK.

“We Are the World” even became the fastest-selling American pop single in history, with 800,000 copies selling out in three days.

In July 1985, four months after the song’s March release, USA for Africa raised over $10 million in record sales and public donations, plus an additional $45 million in merchandise sales. The organizers opted to focus on long-term efforts to assist Africa instead of giving the money all at once. The song has since raised over $80 million for humanitarian efforts, with 10% being saved for hunger efforts in the United States.

The donations were felt. Following Jackson’s death in 2009, one of the single’s beneficiaries, Ethiopia’s Elias Kifle Maraim Beyene, told BBC News: “In 1984 Michael Jackson, along with a number of other leading musicians, made the song ‘We Are the World’ to raise money for Africa. We received a lot of aid from the world and I was one of those who directly benefitted from it. The wheat flour that was distributed to the famine victims was different to the usual cereal we bought at the market. We baked a special bread from it. The local people named the bread after the great artist and it became known as Michael Bread. It was soft and delicious. When you have been through such hard times you never forget events like this. If you speak to anyone who was in Addis Ababa at that time they will all know what Michael Bread is and I know I will remember it for the rest of my life.”

Related: John Legend Says Late Friend Quincy Jones Lived ‘One of the Most Consequential Lives’ in History: ‘The Life of the Party’

Jones died on Sunday, Nov. 3 at his Los Angeles home.

In a statement provided to the Associated Press, the Jones family wrote, “Tonight, with full but broken hearts, we must share the news of our father and brother Quincy Jones’ passing. And although this is an incredible loss for our family, we celebrate the great life that he lived and know there will never be another like him.”

“He is truly one of a kind and we will miss him dearly; we take comfort and immense pride in knowing that the love and joy, that were the essence of his being, was shared with the world through all that he created. Through his music and his boundless love, Quincy Jones’ heart will beat for eternity.”