10 Artists Who Missed Live Aid 1985 (And Why)

Some of rock and metal’s biggest names were at Live Aid in 1985, but there were also some very notable absences as well. Who are the big artists that missed out on Live Aid and why were they not there? Let’s take a deeper dive.

Arguably the most noticeable absence in the rock world was that of Bruce Springsteen, who had been riding high on his Born in the U.S.A. album over the past year. The Boss had famously taken part in the “We Are the World” session, but when Live Aid came around in mid-July, there was no Springsteen set. Why? The singer has since acknowledged he underestimated the culture significance that Live Aid would provide at the time.

Like Springsteen, Huey Lewis had also joined the “We Are the World” recording. But in the case of Lewis, he was actually initially expected to take part, but later bowed out while sharing his concerns about where the money raised was actually going. Lewis took some heat over his skepticism, but stood by his decision at the time to bow out.

This features also includes some artists who ultimately weren’t wanted for the show, some who bowed out late due to specific issues and others who simply ran into scheduling conflicts.

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See some of the big names who ended up sitting on the sidelines as arguably the biggest concert event of the ’80s unfolded.