October 5, 2003 – Honoring Michael’s humanitarian work at RMA 2003
Last night at the Radio Music Awards 2003, Beyoncé Knowles invited Michael onto the stage with the words, “Welcome the artist and humanitarian, Michael Jackson,” and presented him with a special award in recognition of his humanitarian work in promoting peace and friendship. Following that, Michael delivered remarks, the full text of which you can read below:
“I want to thank you for your love, your support, and everything you’ve done. For me, being here is a great honor. We Are The World was a project we did to deliver food to all the people around the world who are living in hunger. As you know, it was a huge success. We Are The World (we are also part of the world). Now it’s time to do something behind We Are The World—to express our feelings and hopes, and to help those who need it most.”
It’s been two years—there’s been a lot of time—but with about 100 people who helped by being present in the recording of this music, the time has finally come for this project to bear fruit. Without you, this wouldn’t have happened (referring to the audience). Without Beyonce, she also has a role. Many artists. I really love this lady who is here—she’s so lovable (referring to Beyonce). Very, very talented artists who helped create the song I wrote. Two years ago, we survived a terrorist attack—an attack that changed not only our country, but the entire world. I will never forget that terrible tragedy, which ultimately brought us together, and it was because of that that this project came into being. Producing this song by itself was a miracle. Here, you will see a video showing the highlights of this collaboration and movement, and you are experiencing it here tonight in this place for the first time. I thank Radio Music Awards for giving us this opportunity to present it to the world. I hope that once again we can carry out a mission to guide the world toward balance, and that we can do this by asking ourselves this question every day: what else can I give? (What More Can I Give?) ”