Bits & Bytes

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

Bono visits with Pope Francis

Bono was at the Vatican Wednesday for a private meeting with Pope Francis. According to the Catholic News Agency, the private visit lasted a little more than 30 minutes and the two talked about topics ranging from commerce and development to the sexual abuse scandal:

Irishman Bono, born Paul David Hewson, also said that having just come from Ireland, they "inevitably" spoke about "the pope's feelings about what has happened in the Church."

He said he explained to Francis that to some it looks like "the abusers are being more protected than the victims," and that he "could see the pain" in the pope's face. "I felt he was sincere, and I think he's an extraordinary man for extraordinary times," Bono said.

Bono also signed an agreement on behalf of the ONE Campaign to work with Scholas Occurentes, an educational foundation supported by Pope Francis. "We haven't figured out what we are going to do together," Bono said, "but we sort of have a crush on each other" -- that quote is according to the Catholic publication Crux.

The Vatican has posted this brief video with highlights from Bono's visit with Pope Francis.

U2 Set Lists: Lisbon, Sept. 16 & 17, 2018

The Experience + Innocence tour just finished up two nights in Lisbon, Portugal. Bono said during tonight’s show that the Lisbon audiences have been the most enthusiastic of the tour so far, calling the band's time in the city "crazy, beautiful days." The tour’s second leg, almost a third of the way through, has found its stride. The set list has remained consistent with only the fourth song in the set rotating between "Red Flag Day" and "All Because Of You" in cities with multiple nights. "Until The End Of The World" continues to begin with Bono quoting from William Golding’s Lord Of The Flies and concludes with William Blake’s "Introduction To Songs Of Experience." MacPhisto continues to quote Kraftwerk’s "Hall Of Mirrors" before going into his spiel.

In Lisbon, MacPhisto’s commentary has been centered around the democracy found in Portugal. Tonight he said, "You know, there’s a funny smell in the air. It’s really nasty. I know what it is. Democrats. The place just stinks of democracy."

Next up: Two shows in Madrid starting on Thursday.

Bono makes surprise appearance at Ukraine conference

Bono took advantage of a couple off days on the E+I tour schedule to make a quick stop Saturday at a current events conference in Ukraine. He appeared on the final day of the 3-day YES (Yalta European Strategy) conference, his first time ever in the country. Bono did a sit-down interview with journalist Fareed Zakaria that lasted about an hour that covered many of the humanitarian issues U2 fans are already familiar with.

In the video below, Bono enters at about the 1:30 mark, and the conversation begins at about the 3:00 mark. You'll have to listen closely since there's a translator speaking over the video.

U2 Set List: Paris, Sept. 13, 2018

The final of four shows in Paris brought "All Because Of You" back to the set list.

Bono made a joke saying that "Irish people don’t know how to look cool in the beach. French people know how to be in the beach."

Some special guests of the night: Lenny Kravitz, Emmanuel Macron President of France, Gayle Smith President of RED.

During the introduction to "One", Bono read part of the lyrics of "Streets of Surrender". The song was written after the Bataclan attack in 2015. Bono expressed his love to Paris calling it "the city of liberty."

See full Paris 4 set list.

Next show: Sept. 16, Lisbon.

U2 Nominated for 'Tour of the Year' American Music Award

U2 is nominated for a 2018 American Music Award in the Tour of the Year category. Also nominated are Beyoncé & JAY-Z, Bruno Mars, Ed Sheeran and Taylor Swift.

These are fan-voted awards, so you can cast your vote online or vote by posting a tweet with the nominee’s name or Twitter handle, the category name and the hashtag #AMAs. 

The awards ceremony, Oct. 9 at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles, will air live on ABC.

U2 Set List: Paris, Sept. 12, 2018

The third show in Paris, France, had no changes in the set list. It was just like night 1, with "Red Flag Day" instead of "All Because Of You."

Bono namechecked Angelique Kidjo during "Beautiful Day." The singer and activist has performed with the U2 singer three times: at the Africa Rising Art Exhibition, Mo Ibrahim Foundation concert and RED auction. She also collaborated with Bono and John Legend for "Move On Up."

Gayle Smith, president and CEO of RED, was present at the show. Bono thanked his "boss" during the introduction to "One."

See full Paris 3 set list.

Next: tomorrow, final show in Paris.

Free: #U2eiTour wallpapers for your smartphone

UPDATE, September 3, 2018: With the addition of a Berlin concert on November 13, we've updated the "Leg 2: November 2018" wallpaper below. If you downloaded it earlier, please download the newer version!

The Experience + Innocence tour is just a week away, and we have a special gift to help you keep track: free wallpapers for your smartphone!

Below you'll find links to five images with all of the dates and cities that U2 is scheduled to visit on the E+I tour this year. There are two wallpapers for leg one, and three for the second leg. You're welcome to save any/all to your phone and use them as your home/lock screen as the tour progresses.

Links to see/save the wallpaper images are below -- enjoy!

Leg 1: May 2018

Click to view

Leg 1: June/July 2018

Click to view

Leg 2: August/September 2018

Click to view

Leg 2: October 2018

Click to view

Leg 2: November 2018 - UPDATED!

Click to view

(Note: We've tested the images on a number of different Apple and Android-based smartphones and are happy with the appearance, but the size of your phone's screen might mean that the fit isn't quite perfect.)