On eBay, there are a handful of copies floating around of a promo CD single of the Alicia Keys & Bono duet, "Don't Give Up (Africa)." The song was released exclusively on iTunes in 2005 and as a ringtone by Cingular Wireless, and as far as I know has no further legitimate release.
These CDs claim to be Japanese promo singles, sometimes saying from 2008. The sellers are all from China. I asked a few of them where they got them, and only one replied, saying it was from a friend in Japan and she didn't know what I meant when I said they seemed fake.
I bought one to investigate it myself (and because I missed the window when it was available on iTunes). I have many reasons to believe it's fake, but it puzzles me that multiple online sellers have identical stories on the bootleg's origin. Perhaps it's a semi-official Japanese group producing fake or unauthorized copies? Or perhaps they are real, and Japan's promo singles are just really badly produced.
My reasons:
1. Syntax: The front of the insert and the disc itself both omit the parentheses and call the song "Don't Give Up Africa," crediting it, "by Alicia Keys & BONO." Simple language barrier errors? Perhaps.
2. Generic imagery: The picture on the cover is grainy and isolated as though it was downloaded from the internet and pasted on a blank template. The photos inside of Alicia's "Unplugged" album are similar quality. The layout of the info on the disc and front cover are both very sparse, incomplete, and generic. But hey, some promos are like that.
3. Unprofessional disc: The texture on the disc's front is that of a cover sticker. The back side has the tell-tale ring around the center that indicates a burned disc; professional CDs are uniform color on the back because they finish burning the complete disc even after all the music/data has been burned. But hey, some of U2's promos are on undecorated CDRs, right?
4. No further information: I've looked all over the internet and can't find any confirmation that these CDs were really released. I can't even find reference to them anywhere other than the eBay listings. I even checked the catalog on BMG Japan's website. (BMG produces Alicia Keys' stuff. The backside of the insert and the front of the CD both have the official BMG Japan logo, though again in questionable quality). The digital single was to benefit Keep a Child Alive, a charity Alicia supports, and the back of the insert refers to them, their website, and the World AIDS Day release of the song on iTunes and as a ringtone for Cingular Wireless. But I can't find mention of a promotional CD on their website either.
Attached are scans of the disc and insert, in a slimline jewel case. (Sorry they're huge).
Anyone know anything at all about this?
