By Elizabeth Willoughby on
Bono's (SHOPATHON)RED, which launched December 1, World AIDS Day, has a fun new jingle attached to it performed by Scarlett Johansson as Barry Manilow’s muse.
The shopathon concept allows people can go to Omaze.com/RED to bid on chances to win an experience with celebrities (rather than the prize going to the highest bidder), and (RED) donates the proceeds to fighting AIDS. Things to bid on range widely, and include going for a bicycle ride with Bono in NYC’s Central Park, being Cyndi Lauper's VIP guest in New York, getting your portrait painted by James Franco, meeting George Clooney and receiving compliments from him for 45 seconds, and keeping Matt Damon company in the green room at Jimmy Kimmel Live.
In an interview with Kimmel, Bono complimented the US on its contribution to fighting AIDS. “This is the greatest good news story that nobody knows,” said Bono. “Particularly for the United States of America, nobody knows that of the 15 million lives that have been saved over the last 10 years, the majority of those lives have been saved by American taxpayers.”
While fighting AIDS these days is a matter of access to medication, ten years ago, says Bono, being diagnosed with AIDS was a death sentence. “I remember [seeing] the light going out of people’s eyes,” he says. “I’ve just been back to Rwanda and I’ve seen beds where there [used to be] three to a bed, [today] looking like every hospital you have here, and you should be very proud America of what you have done. It’s really serious stuff. Thank you.”
Copyright © 2015 Look to the Stars
