Bono Launches Download Service for Africa

U2, Jay-Z, Coldplay and R.E.M. are among the bands contributing music to (RED)WIRE, a new download service aligned with Bono's (PRODUCT)RED campaign, which raises money for the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. For $5 a month, members will get a weekly, DRM-free delivery of an exclusive song from a major artist, a tune from a lesser-known artist, and a music video or other content. The service goes live at redwire.com in December. According to Coldplay's Chris Martin, Bono's involvement ensures there will be a steady stream of material from top acts: "There's certain people, where, whatever they ask for, you give it."

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Song Stories

“Smells Like Teen Spirit”

Nirvana | 1991

"Smells Like Teen Spirit," named after a brand of deodorant marketed to girls, was Kurt Cobain's attempt to "write the ultimate pop song," he said, using the soft-loud dynamic of his favorite band, the Pixies. Cobain "had that dichotomy of punk rage and alienation," the song’s producer, Butch Vig, told Rolling Stone, "but also this vulnerable pop sensibility. In 'Teen Spirit,' a lot of that vulnerability is in the tone of his voice." Sadly, by the time of Nirvana's last U.S. tour, in late '93, Cobain was tortured by the obligation to play "Teen Spirit" every night. "There are many other songs that I have written that are as good, if not better," he claimed.

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