Moon Meets Super Band U2 After 1st Concert in Korea

President Moon Jae-in (right) shakes hands with Bono of rock band U2 at Cheong Wa Dae in Seoul on Monday. /Yonhap

President Moon Jae-in met vocalist and activist Bono of super rock band U2 at Cheong Wa Dae on Monday.

Advertisement

U2 gave their first ever concert at Gocheok Sky Dome in Korea on Sunday, and Moon bumped a regular Cabinet meeting for Bono.

Moon thanked Bono for delivering a message of peace on the Korean Peninsula and promoting equality during the band's concert.   

The singer has used his fame and wealth to combat hunger and promote human rights, anti-war and environmental awareness around the world. He is highly sought after among progressive politicians who want to adorn themselves with a little stardust.

Barack Obama used the U2 song "City of Blinding Lights" as the background song for his 2007 U.S. presidential campaign and has used it at every major political event since then. In 2011, Obama invited Bono to the White House for dinner. 

Rock band U2 perform at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul on Sunday. /Yonhap

The first lady, meanwhile, attended the concert in Seoul on Sunday evening, the first since the band was formed 43 years ago. 

Tickets ranged from W99,000 to W450,000, but scalpers sold some for millions of won (US$1=W1,190). Around 28,000 people turned up.

The band met when they were in high school and never split up, and their Seoul concert marked the 30th anniversary of their "Joshua Tree" album, which has sold more than 25 million copies.

In their concert here they showed a video on the screen featuring images of Sulli, who died last month after suffering from cyber-bullying for a long time, and other pioneering Korean women and ending with the message "Until we are all equal, no one is equal".