Red Hot Honors World AIDS Day With 30th Anniversary Initiatives

For the past three decades, the Red Hot Organization has been fighting HIV/AIDS through the power of music and pop culture. After producing more than 20 compilation projects, collaborating with over 500 artists, and raising upwards of $15 million for hundreds of charitable groups around the world, the non-profit organization remains "the first, and only ongoing, major album series to benefit the fight against the disease" (The Guardian). 

Today, December 1st, Red Hot honors World AIDS Day with a series of initiatives that continues their trailblazing and life-saving work, while commemorating the record that started it all: Red Hot + Blue. Upon release in 1990, the groundbreaking collection of music, art, fashion and film united David Byrne, Neneh Cherry, Erasure, Jean Paul Gaultier, Keith Haring, Debbie Harry & Iggy Pop, Jim Jarmusch, Annie Lennox, k.d. lang, U2, Tom Waits and dozens more reimagining the songs of Cole Porter. As the mainstream's "first sensible, shame-free pop culture response to HIV/AIDS" (Esquire), Red Hot + Blue sold over a million copies, generating millions of dollars for affected groups, the LGBTQ community, and vital organizations like TAG, who received their first major grant through Red Hot and were therefore able to reform the NIH AIDS research program, expand AIDS research funding, and accelerate the development of crucial medication. 

For World AIDS Day, Red Hot has released a 30th Anniversary Reissue of Red Hot + Blue, available across streaming platforms and digital services in its original, twenty-song entirety for the very first time. 

Find the full track list below and listen here: https://ffm.to/red-hot-blue-a-tribute 

Learn more about Red Hot + Blue in a brand new story from PBS NewsHour: https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/red-hots-30-year-fight-against-aids 

Watch a special message from Dr. Anthony Fauci, commending Red Hot for 30 years of providing critically-needed assistance in the fight against AIDS: https://www.instagram.com/p/CIQgOmOHnB6/

Join Red Hot Co-Founder John Carlin - who directed and produced Red Hot + Blue alongside Co-Founder Leigh Blake - for a Reddit Ask Me Anything, beginning at 3:30pm EST today on r/lgbt: https://www.reddit.com/r/lgbt 

Red Hot is also marking World AIDS Day through a brand new partnership with the New York City AIDS Memorial. Throughout the month of December, an exclusive line of Red Hot + Blue merch will be available through the Memorial's site, including a tote and t-shirt with imagery by artist and AIDS activist David Wojnarowicz, and a shirt bearing a timely truism from Jenny Holzer. Both Wojnarowicz and Holzer were original contributors to Red Hot + Blue, and these merch proceeds will benefit the Memorial's mission to preserve the history of those who died of AIDS, and to empower current and future activists, health professionals, and people living with HIV to end the epidemic through educational and cultural programming.

Order the special items here: https://nycaidsmemorial.org/store 

From George Michael, Madonna and Nirvana to Wu-Tang Clan and De La Soul, to Bon Iver, The National, Sharon Jones, John Legend, Chance the Rapper and Robyn, Red Hot's curatorial instincts have consistently captured the spirit of the times for the past 30 years and counting. They've set the precedent for cultural activism, reduced stigmas, and changed public behavior and preconceptions in ways more relevant now than ever as the world works to surmount the challenges of yet another global pandemic. 

Red Hot's 30th Anniversary efforts will continue throughout December, with more classic content being released over the coming weeks and brand new music to be announced soon.