Billions Rock In Concert Of Concerts

(From The New York Daily News Writers -- By Ellen Tumposky [London],
Jo Piazza [Philadelphia], Tracy Connor [New York])

A galaxy of superstars lit up 10 cities around the globe Saturday, electrifying nearly a million fans who came out for the LIVE 8 CONCERTS with a conscience -- a historic music marathon aimed at stamping out AFRICAN POVERTY.

From the jammed streets of PHILADELPHIA to LONDON's packed HYDE PARK, rock and pop greats such as ELTON JOHN, STEVIE WONDER, MADONNA and BON JOVI joined forces to deliver a message to this week's G-8 SUMMIT of economic leaders.

They hope the unprecedented turnout will pressure the leaders of the eight most-industrialized nations to forgive AFRICAN DEBT and boost FOREIGN AID -- much as 1985's LIVE AID shone a spotlight on ETHIOPIAN FAMINE.

"It was 20 years ago today!" U2 front man BONO and PAUL McCARTNEY sang to a screaming crowd of 200,000 in LONDON -- using the opening line of SGT. PEPPER's LONLEY HEARTS CLUB BAND to recall LIVE AID.

While LIVE AID raised $100 million for famine relief and kept 1.5 billion people glued to their TV screens, the sequel was bigger and better, backers said.

Millions tuned in on radio, TV or the Internet, and AOL reported a new record for streaming video. In PHILADELPHIA, commuter trains were so full of LIVE 8 TICKETHOLDERS that conductors didn't bother collecting fares.

"Right now, you're watching the biggest global event on our planet," actor-rapper WILL SMITH declared from the steps of the city's MUSEUM OF ART, immortalized in the movie ROCKY.

He led the crowd, there to hear the likes of THE BLACK EYED PEAS and THE DAVE MATTHEWS BAND, in snapping its fingers every three seconds -- the interval, Smith said, at which another child in AFRICA dies.

"Today we are calling on the eight most powerful leaders to do what they can to end this daily tragedy with a stroke of a pen," Smith said.

Fans, who had to be hosed down by security to keep cool in the unrelenting sun, were jazzed about the cause and the music.

"It rocks," said DAVE CUPCHAK, 27, a PHILLY construction worker. "We wouldn't miss it for the world. We were too young 20 years ago."

BEN BAJ, 48, wore his LIVE AID PHILADELPHIA T-SHIRT. "I just hope it raises people's awareness to the problems of the poor people in the world and I hope it doesn't fail like the first one," he said.

"I remember watching LIVE AID when I was 12, sitting 6 inches from the TV," said SAM KENWARD, 33, of LONDON. "To be here now, listening to all my favorite bands, is amazing."

The high wattage of the artists who performed for free and the huge numbers who turned out to hear them for free made LIVE 8 a singular event.

FAITH HILL and DURAN DURAN performed in ROME, GREEN DAY in BERLIN, MOTLEY CRUE in TORONTO, THE PET SHOP BOYS in MOSCOW and THE CURE in PARIS. Icelandic pop star BJORK opened the show in TOKYO, and YOUSSOU N'DOUR headlined a slate of AFRICAN ARTISTS in SOUTHWEST ENGLAND.

PHILADELPHIA and LONDON had the largest crowds, thanks to lineups that included JAY-Z, DESTINY's CHILD, COLDPLAY, PINK FLOYD, MARIAH CAREY and REM.

In LONDON, a flock of white doves was released into the sky as U2 performed BEAUTIFUL DAY. In JOHANNESBURG, former SOUTH AFRICAN PRESIDENT NELSON MANDELA urged WESTERN LEADERS to "prevent a genocide."

"Are you ready to start a revolution?" MADONNA shouted to the LONDON crowd.

"MAHATMA GANDHI freed a continent, MARTIN LUTHER KIND freed a people, NELSON MANDELA freed a country," said BOB GELDOF, creator of LIVE 8 and LIVE AID. "It does work -- they will listen."

Even MICROSOFT's BILL GATES and UN SECRETARY-GENERAL KOFI ANNAN got into the groove.

"This is really THE UNITED NATIONS," Annan said in LONDON. "The whole world has come together in solidarity with the poor."