Bono
“U2's throat and talker. Dublin, the glasses, and a second life in other people's debt.”
As frontman of U2, Bono turned a Dublin school band into a global force. His commanding 1985 Live Aid performance and the 1987 masterpiece The Joshua Tree, with 'With or Without You,' made U2 the biggest band in the world and Bono a leading rock voice and activist.
Dublin Schoolboy
Born Paul Hewson in 1960, Bono co-founded U2 with classmates in 1976. The band's debut Boy arrived in 1980, and War made them post-punk standouts.
Biggest Band in the World
U2's 1985 Live Aid performance and the 1987 album The Joshua Tree, featuring 'With or Without You,' lifted them to global superstardom and an Album of the Year Grammy.
Rock Star and Activist
Bono reinvented U2 repeatedly while becoming a prominent campaigner against poverty and AIDS. U2 entered the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2005.
Career Timeline
- 1960Born Paul David Hewson in Dublin.
- 1976Answers Larry Mullen's school note. U2 begins.
- 1987The Joshua Tree.
- 1991Achtung Baby. The second invention.
- 2014Songs of Innocence appears on iPhones. He apologizes.
- 2022Surrender, the memoir.
Biggest Hits
- His nickname 'Bono' came from 'Bono Vox,' adapted from a Dublin hearing-aid shop sign by his friends.
- U2 began as a band of Dublin teenagers at Mount Temple Comprehensive School in 1976.
Portrait: David Shankbone · CC BY 2.0 · via Wikimedia Commons