On Sunday, Bono and the Edge played a short set in a Kyiv bomb shelter that was once a subway station, showing support for Ukraine. In a tweet post from U2‘s official account, the duo said that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy invited them to perform there.
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
In their short set, The Irish Times reports that the duo performed “With or Without You,” “Desire,” “Angel of Harlem,” “Vertigo” and a rendition of Ben E. King’s “Stand By Me.” The U2 bandmates performed the cover with a Ukrainian soldier and changed the “me” in “Stand By Me” with “Ukraine.” Throughout the set, Bono and The Edge were joined by local musicians, including Topolia who is serving in the country’s military.
“The people in Ukraine are not just fighting for your own freedom, you are fighting for all of us who love freedom,” Bono told the crowd. He also said that Ukranians’ fight was resonating across the globe and that there was nowhere he’d rather be than in the country’s capital city.
Last month, U2 participated in Global Citizen’s Stand Up for Ukraine live stream. During that, the band performed “Walk On” from 2000’s All That You Can’t Leave Behind. Previously, Bono wrote a poem expressing his support of Ukraine.
