The Greatest Night in Pop is not waiting for a Netflix release. It is already a Netflix title. The Associated Press reported that it began streaming on January 29, 2024, and Netflix’s official title page lists the film. Availability can differ by country, so check your local Netflix catalog before you press play. The film is Bao Nguyen’s documentary about the making of “We Are the World,” the 1985 charity single recorded by a large group of American pop and rock performers to benefit African famine relief.
Is the documentary on Netflix now?
Yes, as far as the available reporting shows. The AP’s account of the release gives January 29, 2024 as the streaming start date, and Netflix’s media center carries the official title description and credits. Because Netflix licenses titles territory by territory, the catalog in one country may not match another. If you are outside the United States, open the Netflix title page for your region and confirm the film appears there before you assume it is available.
![We Are The World ~THE STORY BEHIND THE SONG~ [DVD]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51k7Og+sHcL._SL160_.jpg)
![V.A. - We Are The World The Story Behind The Song 20Th Anniversary Special Edition (2DVSD) [Japan DVD] HMBR-1095](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51MOJucXgIL._SL160_.jpg)
Two dates are easy to confuse. The January 2024 date is when the film started streaming. The January 28, 1985 date is when the recording session took place in Los Angeles. The film documents the second, but it was released to the public in the first.
What the film covers
Netflix’s media-center description places the central recording session on January 28, 1985, in Los Angeles. The film follows artists gathering to record a song for African famine relief. Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie are credited as the song’s co-writers, and Quincy Jones produced it. The documentary retraces the recording and the effort to bring many prominent performers into one studio on a single night.
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- A dream that became a song, an event, and a worldwide movement! See the making of a miracle as 45 of the biggest names in American popular music combine to record a song to help alleviate the suffering of starving millions in Africa and America.
The film is not a music video or a concert film. It is a reconstruction of a working session, built around the people who were in the room and the logistics that made the recording possible.
How the archival material was assembled
The most distinctive element of the film is how it recreates sound and conversation from the session. According to the Associated Press, the filmmakers combined previously unseen footage from four cameras covering the USA for Africa session with audio recorded by David Breskin, the journalist who wrote a contemporary magazine account of the recording.
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TIME’s feature describes the editing work in more detail. Director Bao Nguyen and editor Nic Zimmermann synchronized Breskin’s dictaphone audio with silent footage of the session. The result lets the film play back exchanges between participants that the official music video never captured, so viewers hear the room rather than only seeing it.
The process works in three stages:
- Capture: Four cameras recorded the session, and some of that footage had no usable audio.
- Audio source: Breskin’s dictaphone recordings supplied the spoken material from the room.
- Synchronization: Nguyen and Zimmermann matched the dictaphone audio to the silent footage, so the film can use both together.
The archival method is described by AP and TIME as reported facts about the production. Viewers should treat the synchronized audio as a reconstruction by the filmmakers, not as a complete, unedited record of every conversation.
Who made the film
Netflix’s media-center listing credits Bao Nguyen as director and Julia Nottingham as producer, and describes them as the team behind the Bruce Lee documentary Be Water. Netflix Tudum identifies Lionel Richie as an executive producer. The table below sets out the roles as each source credits them.
| Role | Person | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Director | Bao Nguyen | Netflix media center |
| Producer | Julia Nottingham | Netflix media center; AP |
| Editor | Nic Zimmermann | TIME |
| Executive producer | Lionel Richie | Netflix Tudum |
| Song co-writers | Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie | Netflix media center |
| Song producer | Quincy Jones | Netflix media center |
| Audio recordist and contemporary writer | David Breskin | AP; TIME |
Netflix’s own listing is the reference for platform credits. The descriptions of the archival technique come from independent reporting by AP and TIME.
Why the song was recorded
The recording’s stated purpose was to raise money for African famine relief. The film’s subject is the effort itself: the session, the people involved and the coordination needed to assemble them. The documentary does not need to claim a measured outcome to explain why it matters. Sources that discuss the song’s impact in measurable terms should be read with care, since the reviewed coverage does not supply a total for charity proceeds from the recording.
A 1985 trade-publication item does describe the home-video product “We Are the World—The Video Event.” It states that profits from the sale of that video, released by RCA, Columbia Pictures Home Video and MusicVision, would go to USA for Africa. The item does not give a proceeds figure. It documents the product and its stated beneficiary, not the amount raised.
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What the filmmakers and participants said
Several statements about the film come from named speakers in published coverage:
- Julia Nottingham, producer, quoted by the Associated Press: “It’s a celebration of the power of creativity and the power of collective humanity.” This is her description in the AP report, not a line spoken within the film.
- Lionel Richie, quoted by TIME: “I do hope the film and the song inspire a younger generation to maybe try something like this.”
- Netflix Tudum feature: The feature’s headline frames Quincy Jones’s method as “Organized Chaos.” That phrase is the publication’s headline framing, not a separately verified verbatim quote from Jones.
The film compared with the original song and video
People searching for the documentary often also want to know how it relates to the original recording. The two are different products. The table compares them on purpose, source material and availability.
| Aspect | The Greatest Night in Pop (documentary) | We Are the World (original recording and video) |
|---|---|---|
| Purpose and format | A later documentary about how the recording was made | The 1985 charity single and its official video |
| Source material | Interviews, previously unseen session footage, and Breskin’s synchronized audio | The original studio performance and its release materials |
| Availability | Netflix title; streaming began January 29, 2024 per AP; check your country | Separate music and video editions; availability not stated in the reviewed sources |
The 1985 home-video product is historical merchandise. It is not a current release of the Netflix film, and the reviewed sources do not establish whether any physical edition of the documentary exists.
Before you watch
- Confirm the title appears in your country’s Netflix catalog, since availability is territory-specific.
- Note that the session footage and audio are a reconstruction assembled from four camera angles and a journalist’s recordings.
- Keep the January 28, 1985 recording date separate from the January 29, 2024 streaming date when you cite either.
- Treat the Netflix listing as the source for credits and the AP and TIME reports as the source for production details.
If you want the song rather than the film, the recording stands on its own as a separate release. Confirm the edition and its availability directly with the current rights-holder or a licensed retailer, since the reviewed sources do not establish which editions are currently sold.
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