Bits & Bytes

A collection of the latest U2 news and announcements posted by our staff.

U22 to be shipped by end of May

U2.com subscribers should be getting an email today with news that U22 will be shipped by the end of May to everyone who's a current member for 2012. U22 is, of course, the latest fan club-only release -- a two-CD collection of 22 live tracks from various shows on the U2 360 tour.

Current U2.com members should also find a bonus live track, "Unknown Caller," available for download now on the Account Info page at U2.com. This is a bonus track that's not included on U22. The email also says that eight more tracks will be available for current members to download on May 30th.

Bono Due to Perform, Speak Later This Week

Bono is slated to make a pair of public appearances this week in the U.S.-- one singing performance and one speaking presentation.

First up is the Jazz Foundation of America's (JFA) annual concert and gala at the Apollo Theater in Harlem on Thursday night (May 17). Bono is listed as one of the concert performers on the JFA's website. Guests at the fund raiser will include Quincy Jones, Dr. John and others. Tickets are still available for the concert and start at $100.

Then on Friday, Bono is due to speak in Washington, DC at the Chicago Council’s 3rd Annual Symposium on Global Agriculture and Food Security. Bono will be there on behalf os his One Campaign to talk about food security and private sector investment in African agriculture. President Barack Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton are also due to speak.

U2 Fan Survey 2012: Second Set of Results Posted

The second set of results from the 2012 U2 Fan Survey is now available, and it takes us through section D -- i.e., four of the nine total sections.

As a reminder, the survey was open from April 5th through April 30th. We received completed responses from 3,530 fans in 79 countries this year, both of which are down from 2010. We think that's likely due to the band being in downtime right now, meaning less traffic to @U2 and fewer fans being aware of the survey.

If you missed our recap of the first set of results, feel free to go back and catch up there. Below are a few thoughts on this second set:

WIRE (u2-list) population is slowly declining. When we asked this question on the first U2 Fan Survey in 2005, 19.4 percent of survey takers said they used to be members of the WIRE, the very first mailing list for U2 fans (started way back in 1992). This year, only 15.1 percent answered in the affirmative. Not surprising, just a little sad for us old-timers.

Forums are pretty popular. About 73 percent of all respondents said they're registered on at least one U2-related forum. But they're mostly lurkers because, in the follow-up question (C5), about 75 percent said they post less than once a month on forums. (Feel free to try the @U2 Forum if you want to join that 73 percent.)

Fewer freeloads? In this year's survey, 48 percent said "yes," they've downloaded a U2 song or album without paying for it. That's down a fair bit from the 55 percent who answered "yes" in 2010. So, either fewer U2 fans are downloading songs without paying, or fewer are willing to admit that they've done so!

Live setlists are a big hit. In this year's survey, a whopping 90 percent of fans said they've followed U2 setlists live online via Twitter or forums. Wow. That's up from about 78 percent back in 2010.

Twitter's gaining steam. On a related note, Twitter is a lot more popular this year (48.5 percent say they don't use it) than it was in 2010 (66 percent said they don't use it). Note, too, that only about 77 percent of fans who say they use Twitter also follow The Edge's account. Not sure what's up with that other 23 percent.

Bono is loved. Edge is respected. Adam was a fashion mistake. Just like in 2010, this year's survey takers said Bono is their favorite U2 band member, but Edge is far and away the choice as most skilled musician in the band. This year, fans voted Adam's October-era afro as the worst fashion mistake in U2 history, a switch from 2010 when Bono's mid-80s mullet won that honor.

U2 has longevity left. Although the numbers are down a bit from 2010, about 66 percent of fans think U2 will still be together and making new music for at least the next eight years. (Bono and Adam will turn 60 years old in eight years, by the way.) In 2010, 74 percent of survey takers felt the band has at least eight years left.

Ready to see all of the replies to Sections C and D? Visit our U2 Fan Survey page. And stay tuned as we post more from the 2012 U2 Fan Survey in the coming days and weeks.

Bono Sings with Glen Hansard in New York City

Bono was a surprise guest during a surprise acoustic concert tonight in New York City featuring fellow Irishman Glen Hansard. Hansard was performing at The Living Room, a small "acoustic listening room," and we're told he was doing a show for future broadcast on Sirius satellite radio.

Bono joined him on stage for the last song of the night, "The Auld Triangle." The photo at right is from The Living Room's Twitter account, but you'll want to watch this Facebook video of the song, courtesy Dawn M.

Bono has performed with Hansard several times in the past, including Christmas busking sessions in Dublin in 2009, 2010 and 2011. They also sang together at Sargent Shriver's funeral in January 2011.

UPDATE: Dawn M. has posted the same Facebook video to YouTube, so we can now share it below via embed. (Thx Dawn!)

UPDATE #2: Here's a longer video from Patrick Glennon that begins at the start of the song with Hansard introducing his guest vocalist.

U2 Fan Survey 2012: First Set of Results Posted

We've just posted the first set of results from the 2012 U2 Fan Survey, and there are some interesting items that stand out in this year's data -- especially when compared to how you voted in the last survey, which took place in April 2010.

This year, the survey was open for five fewer days than in 2010. We still managed to get completed responses from 3,530 fans in 79 countries, both of which are down from 2010. That can be attributed to the U2 360 tour; @U2 gets much higher website traffic when U2 is touring and/or putting out a new album, so more fans were aware of the survey two years ago.

This year's survey is a little less U.S.-centric -- 48.3 percent of survey takers in 2010 lived in the USA, compared to 43.7 percent this year.

Enough of the background, here are a few things to watch for when you look through the first batch of results that we've posted:

Despite U2's efforts, U2 fans are aging. Although U2 and Paul McGuinness have spoken about continuing to try to reach young music fans, there's no sign that the band has been able to stop the aging of its audience. In 2010, almost 34 percent of survey takers were under 30. This year, a little more than 27 percent were in that age range.

Listening less to U2. The number of fans who say they listen to U2 every day fell from 41 percent to 35 percent, and the number who listen 5-6 times per week also dropped slightly. This might be due to timing: In April 2010, there was still plenty of U2 360 tour excitement in the air. This year's survey happened during a down time for U2.

Coldplay is number two. Just like in 2010, Coldplay was named as "next favorite artist" more than anyone else. Their support was even bigger in 2012 (8.2 percent) than in 2010 (7.7 percent).

U2.com support. Less than 15 percent of survey takers who say they're currently paying members at U2.com said they will not be renewing their membership when it's due.

Are we hoarders? Almost 72 percent of fans say they collect U2 memorabilia or merchandise, up from 69 percent in 2010. And when it comes to collecting live shows, five percent of fans say they have more than 500! That's a lot of live versions of "Pride." (I'm foreshadowing future survey responses there.)

(RED) beats Edun. About 45 percent of survey takers say they've bought a (RED) product, compared to about 14 percent who've bought an Edun product. This isn't surprising, though -- (RED) is priced much more favorably for a wider consumer audience than Edun.

Ready to see all of the replies to Sections A and B? Visit our 2012 U2 Fan Survey page. And stay tuned as we post more from the 2012 U2 Fan Survey in the coming days and weeks.

@U2 Question of the Month: May 2012

Welcome to @U2's Question of the Month for May 2012: It's Bono's birthday, and he is tired of store-bought presents. He wants a birthday gift you made, found or organized yourself. What do you give him?

Please send your responses to atu2.com@gmail.com by May 16. We'll post your answers -- and a new question -- on June 16.

Want to see what QOM is all about? Check out the responses to previous Questions of the Month in our News Database. And keep these guidelines in mind:

• Share your own experiences, not your friend's or some random stranger's. Also, a lot of people might read your answer if we post it on @U2, so please keep that in mind if you're sharing personal information.
• Please tell us your full name.
• Since we don't know how many responses we'll get, we can't promise to publish them all. You can improve your chances by being specific, personal and brief (200 words or less is best). We reserve the right to edit for grammar, spelling and length.

QOM -- where @U2 turns the spotlight on you!