U2’s Bono and The Edge Travel to Ukraine to Perform in Bomb Shelter

President Volodymyr Zelensky personally invited Bono and The Edge to perform a surprise concert for the people of Ukraine, and today, the two members of the band announced via Twitter that they would be going to do it.

President @ZelenskyyUa invited us to perform in Kyiv as a show of solidarity with the Ukrainian people and so that’s what we’ve come to do. — Bono and The Edge #StandWithUkraine

— U2 (@U2) May 8, 2022

They performed in a Kyiv subway station that has been converted into a bomb shelter for citizens and members of the Ukrainian military who were present. In the acoustic set, they performed “With or Without You,” “Angel of Harlem,” “Desire,” “Vertigo,” and a version of “Stand by Me” (originally written by Ben E. King) that replaced the word “me” with “Ukraine” throughout the song.

On April 8^th, U2 participated in the “Stand Up for Ukraine” rally where they performed “Walk On” during the livestream. During today’s performance, the duo invited Ukrainian musicians who have joined the military to combat the Russian invasion to perform with them on stage during their set. 

During the set, Bono spoke to the audience, saying “The people in Ukraine are not just fighting for your own freedom, you are fighting for all of us who love freedom. We pray that you will enjoy some of that peace soon.”

Here is a video of their performance of “With or Without You.”