U2 lead singer Bono launched a new music download service this week, and for just $5 a month, fans get lots and lots of great new music. But forget about that.
Proceeds from redwire.com go toward fighting preventable disease in Africa, diseases like AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis. Bono has long been associated with charitable acts on behalf of the African people, but this may be his most revolutionary move.
The music is distributed weekly: a track from a major artist like Jay-Z, Coldplay, Sheryl Crow, R.E.M., Cat Power, Ziggy Marley, John Legend, or Bob Dylan, and a track from an up and coming artist. Subscribers also get a bonus video, perhaps someone reading poetry or telling a story. And subscribers get updates on the direct positive effect their money is having for Africa.
The first artist to contribute a song is U2, of course, covering a Christmas tune called “(I Believe In) Father Christmas.” The launch site red.msn.com features a video for the song.
At a time when some download services still restrict the use of their music even when it has been purchased, redwire.com allows fans to OWN the music and do whatever they want with it: share it, burn it to CD, or put it on any portable player.
But that’s not the important part.
Read Also
Tweet
