U2 have been announced as the first Irish act to receive Fellowship Of The Ivors Academy.
Becoming an Academy Fellow is the highest honour the organisation bestows, and with today’s (March 20) announcement, the iconic rock band become the first Irish act to be inducted into Fellowship in the academy’s 81-year history.
It comes following the band forming in Dublin in 1978 and going on to share countless hits throughout their nearly-five-decade career, including ‘Pride (In The Name of Love)’, ‘I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For’, ‘With or Without You’ and ‘Beautiful Day’.
The honour also comes 15 albums into their career, and following huge milestones including over 175 million records sold worldwide, 10 Number One albums, 22 Grammys, four previous Ivor Novello Awards and being the only band in history to have topped the Billboard 200 in the US across four successive decades.
As well as that, the honour acknowledges the band’s commitment to addressing issues of social unrest and human rights – following on from the members being granted Amnesty International’s Ambassador of Conscience award.
“We were a band before we could play, let alone write songs… In fact it was our inability to play other people’s songs that kicked off our own songwriting,” Bono said. “Early musical heroes like The Ramones, Patti Smith, The Clash were our inspiration. There’s alchemy at play, turning base metals into gold… your shite into gold would be another way of putting it.”
Guitarist, The Edge continued: “Songs are kind of magic. The best ones feel like gifts from some other dimension, but to catch them you have to make yourself available. I’m not sure songs can change the world but they sure have changed mine.”
Reflecting on the award, bassist Adam Clayton shared: “To be recognised in this way by The Ivors Academy feels very special indeed. The appreciation of one’s peers is a humbling honour and we are immensely grateful. We’ve been playing our songs in this country for over 45 years, thank you to all those who have not just supported us, but carried us.”
Drummer Larry Mullen Jr, also weighed in on the honour, saying: “Making music collectively, as we’ve done for close to 50 years, has been an incredible experience and privilege for the four of us and I believe it’s a testament to a band that values individual creativity and independence of mind. We are grateful to each other and very grateful to The Ivors Academy for recognising us with this award.”
U2 receiving the Fellowship for 2025 makes them the latest recipients of the award, following on from Bruce Springsteen, who was granted the award last year and became the first international songwriter to receive the honour.
With the award, U2 will be the 28th Fellows of the Academy, joining songwriting icons including Sir Paul McCartney, Kate Bush CBE, Joan Armatrading CBE, and Sting, who received the award in 2023.
Roberto Neri, CEO of The Ivors Academy said: “We are proud to welcome U2 to Fellowship of The Ivors Academy as era-defining songwriters whose legacy continues to propel musical innovation and inspire social progress.
“As U2’s politically charged anthems have sparked global change, The Ivors Academy is committed to championing creative integrity with the same unwavering passion. At a time when AI threatens to undermine human creativity, U2’s Fellowship stands as a testament to the irreplaceable role of songwriters and composers in shaping culture and inspiring change.”
Tom Gray, Chair of The Ivors Academy also recalled the songwriting ability and commitment to improving the world that the band have at the centre of their existence.
“With fearless poetic lyricism always centre-stage in panoramic musical vistas, the sound of U2 has redefined the fabric of popular music,” he said. “Their songs are sweeping catalysts: hymnals and rallying cries. U2’s induction into Fellowship honours their seminal contributions to music through exceptional songwriting craft.”
In other U2 news, the band recently shared a message and piano piece in support of Ukraine and President Zelenskyy to mark the third anniversary of Russia’s invasion.
The Edge, meanwhile, teased that new material from U2 would be arriving “very soon” with the band “hoping to get to do some shows” in the not-too-distant future. Last year saw the guitarist share that their next album would not be “a straight-up rock thing” and that he was teaming up with Bono and Brian Eno for “some crazy kind of sci-fi Irish folk music”.
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