In 2018, the Freddie Mercury biopic Bohemian Rhapsody (2018) became a cultural and commercial juggernaut, earning 900 million dollars and winning multiple Oscars. Due to this success, Bohemian Rhapsody became a new touchpoint for the myth of Queen for a whole new generation. The film climaxes with the band’s performance at Live Aid in 1985. It’s a triumphant note to end the movie on. Despite some factual errors, in both the presentation of Live Aid and throughout the film, the movie solidified Live Aid, more than it already was, as the crowning achievement of one of the greatest rock bands of all time. However, Live Aid was an all-day performance, with a slew of incredible performers across two continents. Like all of the artists of Live Aid, Queen played a quick set of only six songs, comparatively long to peers like REO Speedwagon, but still a small set overall. So what happened the rest of the day? Queen’s set may have stolen the show, but they were just one of over 70 artists that put on incredible performances at Live Aid that have since been forgotten.

Queen is one of the most beloved bands in rock history. The RIAA has certified 13 Queen singles as platinum (one million) and one as diamond (10 million units). The band has 54 million monthly listeners on Spotify, with eight songs having over a billion streams. They’re Rock & Roll Hall of Famers, Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award Winners, and have been the subject of a successful musical and biopic. So how on earth could Queen possibly deserve more recognition?