The list of musicians, actors, journalists, and celebrities set to appear and/or perform this Friday night on the “Hope For Haiti” telethon keeps growing by the hour, so here’s hoping all this star power will encourage lots of generosity as Haiti struggles to survive and rebuild after last week’s devastating earthquake. Most recently, musicians Bruce Springsteen and Jay-Z have been announced as performers for the telecast, which will air on every major network and a number of cable channels at 8PM EST.
Musically, the most interesting update of late is that Jay-Z and U2 have collaborated on a brand new song for Haiti with producer Swizz Beatz. In fact, the writing and recording of the new tune came about rather quickly. “Last night we wrote a song,” the Edge said (via Consequence of Sound). “Bono got a call from a producer, Swizz. He and Jay-Z wanted to do something for Haiti. So, Bono came up with the phrase on the phone, and last night we were here, we wrote a song–finished, recorded, and sent it back to them.”
E! reports that Bono and Jay-Z are set to perform from the Robert Pattinson-hosted London portion of the telethon (George Clooney will host in Los Angeles, Wyclef Jean in New York City, and CNN’s Anderson Cooper in Haiti).
While all donations made during the event will go to seven different charities, including Red Cross, Oxfam America, and Partners in Health, additional money will be raised on iTunes with songs from the featured performers being made available following telecast.