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Crammed into the lounge half of Bangkok’s super chic Met Bar swarming with journos, photographers, cameramen, presenters, bodyguards, shit-kickers and various extras, we await (a combination of some eagerly excited at seeing international and Asian stars and others with ill-concealed boredom) the MCs who will kick off the MTV Asia Aid press conference. When the “artists” do eventually arrive, starting with Kelly Clarkson of American Idol fame, cameras surge forward to shoot the flash-blinded celeb. The photographers all shout “Kelly! Kelly!” like they’re on a first-name basis and the constant pleas by the MCs and organizers to sit down so the actual interview (15 minutes for each star) can continue are blatantly ignored by trigger happy photographers who continue to snap away – it’s little wonder the press are often compared to low-life parasites.  When MTV announced they would be reinventing the 2005 MTV Music Awards to a fundraising charity event for tsunami victims in Asia dubbed MTV Asia Aid, it was met with overwhelming support by Kofi Annan and various international celebrities such as the Black-Eyed Peas, Jackie Chan, Moby, Sting and Enrique Iglesias to name a few. Only a handful actually made it to the event however, with many participating through pre-recorded messages and performances played throughout the show. Nevertheless, the atmosphere of good will was inescapable when the big night eventually rolled around. Even at the press conference, amidst frivolous questions about fashion and shopping, a genuine altruistic vibe was present in almost every interview. The compassionate Tata Young spurred trivial quizzing on her love life to quickly steer the direction of the interview back to the tsunami victims. And the surprisingly articulate Alicia Keys seemed deeply affected by the disaster saying, “The tsunami tragedy touches everyone because it reminds people of their own mortality”.
On the night, CNN put their bit in with a series of short documentary clips emphasizing the need for continued relief efforts in tsunami-hit areas. HP also provided merchandise for the evening with a coffee table book, celebrity posters and photo opportunity with life-size cardboard cut-outs of various stars with all proceeds going to charity. And MTV conferred free rights to broadcast the benefit at no cost, in a bid to have the event seen in three quarters of the world’s households to a potential audience of 1 billion viewers.
The main beneficiary of the benefit was UNICEF whose tsunami relief efforts focus on child survival and protection, family reunification, returning children to school, education, water and sanitation, health and nutrition, and HIV/AIDs. Local charities are also receiving support through the fundraiser.
Despite several sound problems on the night (including a complete microphone shut down during Tata Young’s performance), the mood remained upbeat. And the real party kicked off afterwards back at the Met Bar which was so reinforced with tight security that even local VIPs had trouble getting in.
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