U2 - Audio Biography

Inception Point Ai

Music Music Commentary

Latest episode

Available Episodes

5 of 98

U2's Vegas Sphere Echoes as Bono & Edge Earn Guthrie Prize and Pollstar's Top Touring Rank
The band U2 BioSnap a weekly updated Biography.This is Biosnap AI, and here is what U2 has been up to in the past few days, weighted for what really matters long term. The big biographical headline is awards and legacy. Multiple outlets including the official U2 site and coverage summarized via AP style reporting note that U2 are being honored with the **2025 Woody Guthrie Prize**, with Bono and the Edge appearing and performing on U2 X Radio on SiriusXM for the occasion. According to U2 dot com, listeners in North America are being urged to tune in as the band accepts the prize and the two bandmates perform, a moment that further cements U2s status as socially engaged, protest rooted rock elders rather than just heritage hitmakers. U2s own news post Turn Up The Human frames Bono and the Edge in conversation about creativity and artificial intelligence as part of this radio programming, underscoring their ongoing public role in the ethics of tech and art. In a parallel legacy lane, Pollstar just dropped a data heavy bombshell about touring history. According to Pollstar, as reported by AP News and summarized by outlets like the New York based Hearst papers and Eric Alpers music column, U2 rank number two on the list of the 25 Most Popular Touring Artists of the Millennium, with 20.2 million tickets sold and over 2.18 billion dollars grossed since 2001, behind only Coldplay. Pollstar itself highlights that their 360 Tour and the more recent U2 UV Achtung Baby Live At Sphere residency are cornerstone events in modern touring economics. Radio sites like 98 Rock and blogs such as That Eric Alper echo those numbers, framing U2 as one of the defining live acts of the last quarter century. On the cultural cross talk front, U2s Las Vegas Sphere era is still reverberating. American Songwriter reports that a tabloid sourced story in The Sun claims Oasis turned down a Vegas Sphere offer partly on the advice of Bono, who allegedly complained about the massive production costs. American Songwriter is careful to attribute that to The Sun and unnamed sources, and neither camp has confirmed it, so that sits firmly in the unconfirmed almost gossip column category rather than verified fact. Meanwhile the bands catalog is being freshly spotlighted. A new U2 playlist tied to Rian Johnsons film Wake Up Dead Man A Knives Out Mystery is featured on U2 dot com, curated by composer Nathan Johnson, who explicitly links U2s songs of faith and doubt to the movies themes. That is low drama but high long term significance, keeping the band embedded in contemporary film culture. At the same time, rock radio outlets like 98 KUPD report that Slash and Myles Kennedy appear on Joe Bonamassas upcoming BB King tribute album Blues Summit 100, covering the U2 and B.B. King collaboration When Love Comes To Town, with Kennedy taking Bonos vocal part. That cover, flagged as a standout by producer Josh Smith, quietly refreshes U2s late 80s work for a new blues rock audience. Finally, in the music press think piece world, American Songwriter teases a feature about the U2 and Rolling Stones albums that speak to one another, emphasizing how U2 have openly owned up to being Stones fans, another subtle brick in the bands long view historical positioning. Thank you for tuning in, and come back next week for more U2 and music world updates. This has been a Quiet Please production, and for more from me check out Quiet Please dot A I.Get the best deals https://amzn.to/3ODvOtaThis content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI
--------
4:03
--------
4:03
U2's Woody Guthrie Prize, New Album Buzz, and Bono's Oasis Advice | U2 News Roundup
The band U2 BioSnap a weekly updated Biography.This is Biosnap AI and here is what U2 have been up to in just the past few days, weighted for what really matters to their long term story. The most biographically significant development is the band being honored with the **2025 Woody Guthrie Prize**, formally recognizing U2s decades long blend of songwriting and social conscience. U2.com and U2 X Radio on SiriusXM are actively promoting special programming built around Bono and The Edge accepting the prize and performing an acoustic set, including an extended conversation with producer T Bone Burnett about folk tradition, protest music, and U2s own catalog. According to U2s official news feed the 65 minute program is now streaming and getting multiple radio airings, giving this award genuine global visibility rather than a one night footnote. On the creative front, U2Songs reports that work on the new studio album is nearing completion, with reliable internal sources pointing to a single planned for next summer and a full album in fall 2026. Those timelines are not yet officially announced by the band and should be treated as informed but unconfirmed guidance from usually accurate insiders. Still, if borne out, this marks the next major chapter after the Las Vegas Sphere era and sets up an extensive promotional and touring cycle through 2026. Meanwhile, U2s own site has been busy myth making in a softer way. A new feature titled Wake Up Dead Man ties into the film Wake Up Dead Man A Knives Out Mystery, with composer Nathan Johnson curating a deep cut U2 playlist and revisiting the bands Sphere shows as a defining live moment of the decade. In the same piece, U2.com plugs Adam Claytons appearance in the Sky Arts series Greatest Basslines, a modest but notable TV spotlight that reinforces his status beyond the shadow of Bono and The Edge. On the metrics and legacy side, ABC Audio via several classic rock outlets reports that Pollstar has ranked U2 the number two touring artist of the millennium by worldwide ticket sales from 2001 to 2025, just behind Coldplay. That hard data locks in what the Sphere residency already implied they remain one of the dominant live acts on earth in both cultural and commercial terms. Finally, in the wider gossip ecosystem, American Songwriter relays a tabloid claim from The Sun that Bono privately warned Noel Gallagher about the massive production costs of a Sphere style residency, supposedly helping persuade Oasis to pass on the venue. No one on the record has confirmed this, and neither Oasis nor U2s camp has commented, so this should be treated as colorful but unverified backstage lore rather than established fact.Get the best deals https://amzn.to/3ODvOtaThis content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI
--------
3:31
--------
3:31
U2's Touring Legacy Soars: Pollstar's Top 25 Reveals Band's Enduring Live Impact
The band U2 BioSnap a weekly updated Biography.This is Biosnap AI, and here is what U2 has been up to in the past few days, weighted for what really matters to the band’s long term story. The most biographically significant development is a new round of recognition for U2s touring legacy. Pollstar just unveiled its list of the 25 most popular touring artists of the millennium, based on worldwide ticket sales from 2001 to 2025, and U2 lands near the very top, alongside Coldplay, Ed Sheeran, Dave Matthews Band, and Taylor Swift. Pollstar reports that U2s 360 tour alone grossed about 736 million dollars, and highlights that the band christened the Las Vegas Sphere with their U2 UV Achtung Baby Live at Sphere residency, 40 shows from September 2023 to March 2024. Pollstar and an Associated Press write up of the list both frame U2 as one of the defining live acts of this era, a status note that will stick in any future biography. In the same news cycle, radio outlets including ABC Audio, carried by stations like MyFMToday, Sanilac Broadcasting, and Quality Rock 97.5, have been running an on this day segment marking the 25th anniversary of U2s first ever Saturday Night Live appearance back in December 2000, when they played Beautiful Day and Elevation while Val Kilmer hosted. Those pieces also recap later SNL stints tied to How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb, No Line on the Horizon, and Songs of Experience, reinforcing U2s long standing mainstream TV profile. This is retrospective rather than new activity, but it keeps the band in current news rotation. On the rumor front, American Songwriter reports that Oasis allegedly turned down a Vegas Sphere residency on the advice of Bono, suggesting he told them not to repeat what U2 had just done there. That story is based on unnamed sources and should be treated as unconfirmed color rather than established fact. There are also tribute level mentions, such as New Jersey Stage previewing Mysterious Ways The U2 Christmas Experience at the Landis Theater, a holiday U2 tribute show, which underlines the bands ongoing cultural footprint but does not involve the members themselves. No major new U2 tour, album announcement, or fresh band public appearance has been confirmed by the official site U2 dot com in the past few days, beyond ongoing speculation pieces about possible 2025 activity, which remain speculative at this stage. Thanks for tuning in, and come back next week for more. This has been a Quiet Please production, and for me, check out Quiet Please dot A I.Get the best deals https://amzn.to/3ODvOtaThis content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI
--------
3:11
--------
3:11
U2's Unreasonable Guitar Record: Achtung Baby Live, Vegas Residency, and Pollstar Top Tours
The band U2 BioSnap a weekly updated Biography.U2 continues to command attention across multiple fronts as we head into the final weeks of 2025. The Irish rock legends are generating buzz from both their creative endeavors and their undeniable touring legacy.On the creative front, band members have been openly discussing new music in development. Bono revealed in recent statements that the group has substantial material ready or nearly ready for release, describing it as featuring "amazing new songs" with a raw, powerful edge. He characterized the upcoming work as an "unreasonable guitar record," suggesting a return to the visceral rock energy of classic acts like Patti Smith and Iggy Pop. Edge responded to this description with characteristic enthusiasm, indicating the band is genuinely excited about pushing boundaries with whatever level of intensity Bono wants to pursue.The band's touring legacy received major recognition this week when Pollstar released its definitive ranking of the most popular touring artists of the new millennium based on worldwide ticket sales from 2001 through 2025. U2 secured the number two position on the list, trailing only Coldplay. The recognition underscores the band's massive commercial impact, with their 360-degree tour grossing 736 million dollars and their Divide tour reaching 776 million dollars. Most recently, U2 concluded their visually stunning residency at the Las Vegas Sphere, which ran from September 2023 through March 2024 and featured 40 performances of their "Achtung Baby Live at Sphere" production.On a lighter note, a U2-themed Christmas experience was performed at the Landis Theater in Vineland, New Jersey on December twelfth, where tribute performers brought a festive holiday twist to the band's iconic catalog, blending Christmas spirit with the energy that defines U2's live performances.Meanwhile, there is speculation within industry circles about potential future touring plans, though the band has remained characteristically tight-lipped about any official announcements regarding dates or venues for 2025 or beyond. Fans continue registering interest for potential UK shows, but nothing has been officially confirmed.The combination of active songwriting, recognition as one of the millennium's most successful touring acts, and continued cultural presence suggests U2 is positioned for significant developments in the coming months, though the band is clearly controlling the narrative around timing and specifics.Get the best deals https://amzn.to/3ODvOtaThis content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI
--------
2:43
--------
2:43
U2's Woody Guthrie Prize, Bono's Cannes Splash, and the Wait for Tour News
The band U2 BioSnap a weekly updated Biography.This is Biosnap AI and in the past few days the U2 universe has been relatively quiet on stage but quietly significant behind the scenes. The biggest confirmed development is honors rather than concerts: AOL reports that U2 have been named recipients of the 2025 Woody Guthrie Prize, with the award set to be presented at Tulsas historic Cains Ballroom in October, a long term biographical marker that cements their reputation for socially engaged songwriting and activism, squarely in Guthries protest song lineage according to AOL Entertainment. On the live front there is still a vacuum of hard news about the next full scale U2 tour. Hospitality Centre in the UK notes that no official 2025 tour dates have been announced, and while it speculates about possible arenas like Londons O2 and Manchester Arena, that remains only informed guesswork rather than confirmed scheduling. The same outlet highlights that U2s most recent major run was their Las Vegas Sphere residency that wrapped in early 2024, underlining how any future tour announcement would be a major career beat after that technological milestone. Hospitality Centre also flags ongoing hints from Bono about a new so called unreasonable guitar record, framing it as a back to raw rock project, but again with no formal release date or title locked in, so this still lives in the realm of advanced but unannounced work. Away from the band collectively, Bono remains the center of public life. AOL recently covered a rare red carpet outing where Bono appeared with wife Ali Hewson and two of their children at the Cannes premiere of the film B Stories Surrender, based on his memoir. That appearance, covered by Variety and relayed by AOL, reinforces the pivot of the frontman into literary and film based storytelling, a thread that is becoming an important late career chapter alongside music. Meanwhile the U2 brand continues to echo through the tribute circuit rather than official band stages. Eventbrite listings promote Without U2 shows in Chicago and the I Will Follow U2 America tribute in Connecticut, plus a Wide Awake U2 tribute night at Iron Smoke Distillery in New York, all proof that demand for the bands catalog remains high even in the absence of fresh tour dates from the real thing. These are not U2 performances, but they keep the bands music publicly visible week to week. There are no credible reports in the last few days of surprise U2 shows, new singles, or formal tour announcements. Any rumors circulating on fan forums about secret studio sessions or Sphere return dates are unconfirmed and should be treated as speculation until backed by statements on the official U2 site or major outlets. Thanks for tuning in, and come back next week for more U2 developments. This has been a Quiet Please production, and for more from me check out Quiet Please dot A I.Get the best deals https://amzn.to/3ODvOtaThis content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI
--------
3:21
--------
3:21

More Music podcasts

About U2 - Audio Biography

U2: Four Irish Lads Who Became the Biggest Band in the World In 1976, four teenagers from the north side of Dublin formed a band that would go on to become one of the most successful and legendary rock groups of all time - U2. Comprised of vocalist Bono, guitarist The Edge, bassist Adam Clayton, and drummer Larry Mullen Jr., U2 honed a passionate, anthemic sound that elevated them from playing small clubs in Ireland to selling out stadiums across the globe. Over nearly five decades, the band has released 14 studio albums, scored massive chart-topping hits, pushed the envelope of live performance technology and production, and cemented an iconic status in pop culture history while retaining their core lineup - a feat virtually unheard of in modern rock music. The Origins In the fall of 1976, 14-year-old Larry Mullen Jr. put up a notice at Dublin's Mount Temple Comprehensive School seeking musicians for a new band. Among the respondents were 16-year-old Adam Clayton and Paul Hewson, along with 15-year-old David Evans. Despite their age disparity and divergent personalities, the four boys found chemistry rehearsing in Larry's kitchen and down in a friend's basement over the next few months. Mullen's initial jazz interests evolved into a dramatic, guitar-driven rock sound thanks to the contributions of the gifted Evans who went by the stage name "The Edge." Rounding out the group, the talkative, ambitious Bono took the helm as lyricist and frontman, despite an admittedly limited vocal range at first. After cycling through forgettable names like The Hype and Feedback, the newly christened U2 played small venues around Dublin and began building a devoted local audience drawn to their youthful charisma and emotional live performance that spoke to Ireland's larger social unrest at the time. Their 1980 debut album "Boy" earned critical praise, boosted by college radio airplay driving singles like "I Will Follow." Despite lacking polish, the LP's spiritual searching and soaring guitar rock announced a band brimming with talent and conviction. Global Superstardom While touring relentlessly through 1981, U2 began breaking the UK market. But their 1983 album "War" proved the major breakthrough sparking a meteoric rise. Anthemic tracks "Sunday Bloody Sunday" and "New Year's Day" harnessed U2's arena-ready sound, melding personal themes with political outrage over civil strife in Northern Ireland that resonated widely. The album established U2 as social voice for young people globally. Their follow-up "The Unforgettable Fire" expanded that ambition even as its abstract lyrics and eclectic musical directions confused some fans expecting formulaic anthems. Still, powered by standout single "Pride (in the Name of Love)," U2 cemented icon status with their next release "The Joshua Tree," which arrived in 1987 hotly anticipated as an album that could define the band’s place in rock history. Anchored by radio staples like "Where the Streets Have No Name," "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For," and "With or Without You," the lyrically earnest, sonically rich record connected with fans struggling through 1980s economic disruption or seeking meaning amidst the era's materialistic excess. "The Joshua Tree" memorialized restless American dream-seeking that resonated universally in an increasingly interconnected world sitting at cultural crossroads. The LP topped charts globally, moving a then staggering 20 million copies total. Its accompanying extensive world tour saw U2's popularity skyrocket into the stratosphere. Artistic Growth and Reinvention Rather than capitalizing on that popularity through "Joshua Tree Part 2" though, U2 characteristically changed course in more experimental directions. The muted reaction greeting 1988's "Rattle and Hum" album of blues/Americana-tinged studio and live tracks reflected both critical impatience with the band's righteous seriousness by this point and commercial wariness about U2 abandoning surefire formulas. While misunderstood upon release, "Rattle and Hum" expanded concepts the band would mine substantially in the coming decade. Indeed, U2 reinvented themselves radically through the 1990s - almost to the brink of mainstream extinction. Working with studio avant-garde producers Brian Eno and Daniel Lanois, their 1991 opus "Achtung Baby" found the veteran band tapping electronic/industrial textures and debaucherous lyrical themes capturing Bono's identity crisis unease about impending middle age and fame. Smash singles like "Mysterious Ways" and "One" powered a commercial rebirth, while the landmark Zoo TV world tour sees Bono embracing ironic media saturation commentary through postmodern multi-screen spectacle satirizing technology's accelerating takeover of culture. Continuing nourishing experimental muse, 1993's subversive "Zooropa" toyed with distorted vocals, and trip-hop sounds and headed into the yet darker territory before the stripped-down reflective "Pop" closed the decade in 1997. Though far less commercially bountiful than U2's 80s zenith, the 90s displayed relentless artistic courage by one of Earth's biggest bands refusing to coast predictable lanes. Ever melodic mood setters anchoring emotional resonance, the enlarged U2 explored modern fractured identity masterfully. Stadium Glory in the New Millennium In perhaps their last full commercial peak though, U2 mined transcendence anew with the 2000 album "All That You Can't Leave Behind" spawning enduring hits like "Beautiful Day" and "Walk On." The record reignited radio play by marrying soaring choruses and Edge's signature guitar textures more reminiscent of their 80s heyday to contemporary flourishes. Garnering 7 Grammys, it reconnected U2 as uplifting emotional healers when global consciousness sought inspiring icons after the symbolic Millennial turnover. They doubled down touring football stadiums and worldwide through 2005 supporting single "Vertigo" off follow-up "How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb" touting signature aggression. Over subsequent years in the 2000s though, restlessness resurfaced creatively for veteran U2 with mixed results on releases like "No Line on the Horizon." Ever socially conscientious, new millennium albums increasingly spotlight injustice or honor unsung change-makers like poet Pablo Neruda and apartheid activist Martin Luther King Jr between relationship ruminations and religious seeking. Yet gradually over the 2010s, as touring occupied more band cycles, new material output slowed even if live performances continued marveling stadia with dazzling production scales. Today as their 1970s inception hits the half-century mark amazingly with core four members still intact, U2's middle-aged elder statesmen enjoy expanding creative freedom surveying far horizons beyond chasing chart numbers. Even the surprise 2019 single "Ahimsa" collaborating with Indian composer AR Rahman signaled renewed hunger enriching U2's signature sound and pursuing intercultural spiritual connections. Their 2023 album "Songs of Innocence" found intimate full circle return lyrically pondering life eternal questions after so much worldly seeking and achievement already. Sphere and Beyond Today U2 is still filling massive spaces like Las Vegas' state-of-the-art new Sphere performance theater with cutting-edge immersive production relishing pushing sonic visual possibilities performing live. 2023's 40-date Sphere residency beckons latest chapter four superstar Irish kids maturing into generous rock icons eternally leaping expected bounds as creative integrity still steers course rather than commercial safety. Attaining every imaginable fame benchmark over five decades, their indispensable songbook soundtrack generation after generation through enduring anthemic catalog matching the unmatched longevity of the core fraternity. Truly global household mononyms BONO, EDGE, ADAM, and LARRY signify interwoven brotherhood built upon transcendent musical chemistry as their next creative phase shines light wherever passion leads. After Sphere's curtain call, one feels the spaces U2 might fill remain boundless chasing inspiration through solidarity choruses ever beckoning devoted generations joining the pilgrimage heartened. For just when the industry may peg veteran outfits bowing gently towards nostalgia tours reliving yesteryear glories, trust the ever-incendiary Irish lads flipping script writing exhilarating new chapters defying limitation. Expect dramatic surprises yet as the band perhaps best correlated to the word "MORE" shows little appetite for ending journeys amplifying the most vulnerable and voiceless through utterly magnificent shows scored by that heaven-sent guitar army propelling crusades where roads rise up meeting soaring skies ahead. Thanks for listening to Quiet Please. Remember to like and share wherever you get your podcasts. And Hey! History buffs, buckle up! Talking Time Machine isn't your dusty textbook lecture. It's where cutting-edge AI throws wild interview parties with history's iconic figures. In the Talking Time Machine podcast: History Gets a High-Tech Twist, Imagine: Napoleon Bonaparte talking French Politics with Louis the 14th! This podcast is futuristically insightful. Our AI host grills historical legends with questions based on real historical context, leading to surprising, thought-provoking, and often mind-blowing answers. Whether you're a history geek, a tech junkie, or just love a good interview, Talking Time Machine has something for you. Talking Time Machine: search, subscribe and (Listen Now!)

Podcast website

Music Music Commentary Music History