U2’s Bono And The Edge Perform In Kyiv, Ukraine Metro Station

Bono and The Edge of U2 gave a surprise performance in a metro station now being used as a bomb shelter in Kyiv, Ukraine, yesterday (8). The gesture follows a personal invitation by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

A social media post by U2 at lunchtime in the UK yesterday read: “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.” In April, they took part in Global Citizen’s #StandUpForUkraine social media rally, performing an acoustic “Walk On.”

Accompanied by The Edge on acoustic guitar, Bono sang U2 hits such as “Sunday Bloody Sunday,” “Vertigo,” “Desire,” “Angel of Harlem,” “With or Without You,” “Pride (In The Name Of Love),” “Walk On,” and “One.” They also included a version of Ben E. King’s soulful perennial “Stand By Me.”

A crowd of approximately 100 people were present at the event, with the stars joined by Ukrainian soldiers and members of the Ukrainian band Antytila. Bono said: “Your president leads the world in the cause of freedom right now. The people of Ukraine are not just fighting for your own freedom, you’re fighting for all of us who love freedom. We pray that you will enjoy some of that peace soon.”

Zelenskyy said in his daily video address that he was “grateful” to the band “for supporting our people and drawing even more attention to the need to help our people.”

During their visit to the war-torn country, Bono and The Edge also paid a visit to Bucha, the city in which hundreds of bodies were found in a mass grave in March. The Free Ukraine account posted: “Bono has been involved in charitable activities in different parts of the world for decades, today he saw with his own eyes the consequences of the Russian invasion for Bucha.”