Bob Geldof, the force behind the biggest global music rally to help end poverty in Africa, has been raging against injustice since he burst onto the world stage as a young rock star in the 1970s.
Love him or hate him, the shaggy-haired Irishman’s rough, tell-it-as-it-is style has inspired pop icons, politicians and millions of ordinary people to back a cause that, for him, started in 1984 with his smash-hit Band Aid single for the impoverished continent entitled Do They Know It’s Christmas.
A year later he spearheaded the world’s first charity gig for Africa, Live Aid, and went on to campaign tirelessly for the third world, while his original music career as front man of rock band the Boomtown Rats took a back seat.
Two decades later and just three days ahead of his Live8 concerts, Geldof is one of the world’s most recognised and admired advocates for debt cancellation, greater aid and freer trade in Africa, despite typically decorating his statements with frequent expletives.
Born just outside Dublin on October 5, 1954, into a relatively poor family, Geldof lost his mother as a small boy and was often left to his own devices by his travelling salesman father.
He became a music journalist before finding fame in the mid-1970s with the Rats, which enjoyed a string of hits including I Don’t Like Mondays.
Geldof also dabbled for a short time with acting, most notably appearing in the 1982 film Pink Floyd The Wall.
Two years later, the Boomtown Rats were no longer at the top of the charts and Geldof’s attention was caught by a BBC news report on a famine in Ethiopia. He vowed to do something about it, in true rock-and-roll style.
Together with musician Midge Ure from Ultravox he co-wrote wrote Do They Know It’s Christmas and gathered 40 top artists to perform the ballad as a charity single under the group name Band Aid.
The song raised millions of dollars after its 1982 release, but Geldof, convinced he could do more, went on to organise the Live Aid show, before travelling the world to gather money and support for Africa.
By challenging then British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, he helped to influence official government policy towards famine relief and in June 1996 became known as ”Sir Bob” after receiving an honorary knighthood for his work.
While battling to alleviate the daily suffering of millions of people in Africa, Geldof has also experienced his own personal tragedies.
As a young rock star, he fell in love with music journalist Paula Yates who was a massive fan of his band. The two married in 1986 and had three children — Fifi Trixibelle, Peaches, and Pixie.
Yates, however, left Geldof in 1995 after falling for Australia’s INXS singer Michael Hutchence while working as a television presenter.
Two years later, Hutchence committed suicide and in 2000 Yates was found dead at her home in London after taking an overdose.
During this time, Geldof went to court to claim custody of his three children and became the legal guardian of Hutchence and Yates’ own daughter Tiger Lily.
Driven by a desire to help those in need, Geldof is now focused on rallying the world behind a better deal for Africa.
”Live8: A Long Walk to Justice” starts with simultaneous concerts in London, Paris, Rome, Berlin, Philadelphia, Toronto, Tokyo, Johannesburg and — increasingly likely — Moscow.
It will then move to a major rally in Edinburgh on July 6-8 to pressure the leaders of the Group of Eight (G8) world powers to strike a deal for Africa as they hold a simultaneous summit at the nearby Gleneagles resort.
”By doubling aid, fully cancelling debt, and delivering trade justice for Africa, the G8 could change the future for millions of men, women and children,” Geldof said in a statement on the Live 8 website. ‒Sapa-AFP