Huey Lewis and Kenny Loggins both sang on “We Are the World,” and on the April 14 episode of Huey’s ‘80s Radio with Huey Lewis on Apple Music Hits, they reminisce about their experience — and also debate whether Huey ripped Kenny off.
Speaking about the “We Are the World” Netflix documentary The Greatest Night in Pop, Huey tells Kenny that while watching it, he learned that Kenny was the one who suggested to Michael Jackson that Huey sing the line in the song that had been earmarked for no-show Prince.
“I never knew it until then,” Huey tells Kenny of the line “But if you just believe/ there’s no way we can fall.”
Kenny replies, “Yeah, Michael came up to me and said, ‘Well, Prince isn’t going to be here. Who should sing the solo line?’ I said, ‘The best singer in here is Huey Lewis.'”
High praise indeed, considering the other singers in the room included Stevie Wonder, Steve Perry, Daryl Hall, Dionne Warwick and Billy Joel.
Huey and Kenny also discuss Kenny’s 1980 hit “This Is It,” with Huey saying he suspects he ripped Kenny off when he was writing his hit “If This Is It.”
“I got the melody, but I’m trying to write the lyric, and God, I couldn’t come up with it. It was just so difficult,” Huey recalls. “And I was on the bus … and I, probably… mindful of your song, I don’t know … ‘This Is It’ just work[ed] for me.”
Kenny points out that the phrase “this is it” is sung the same way in both songs.
“That’s right. That’s right. That’s right,” says Huey. “So I apologize for that.”
Kenny then jokes, “You’ll be hearing from my lawyers.”
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