Late last year I listened to the audiobook of Bono’s long (20 hours 25 minutes) and extremely interesting autobiography, ‘Surrender’. The quote, above, came from the book, and while you can read the quote in isolation and either nod or shake your head based on your own experiences, to understand the quote in context is quite powerful.
I like some U2 music (not all, and am certainly not a 'super-fan'), but in my 40 years of listening to their music, I never knew much about the band behind the music. I certainly did not know that Bono was such an activist (frankly, he should be knighted 3 x over for his mammoth, international fundraising initiatives).
Bono is also an astute businessman. When he refers to ‘art’, he means all creativity (in his case, music). U2 was constantly looking for innovative ways to distribute their music, which led to multiple groundbreaking partnerships (notably with Apple iPod and iTunes).
Bono was able to leverage U2’s worldwide fame to get attention, open doors, start conversations, persuade and drive change. He is truly a remarkable man (irrespective of what you think of his music). Now that I know his story, this quote has a far greater impact.
My aim is to help others to be better at the business of art. If you would like to be better at the business of art yourself, then I encourage you to subscribe to my membership programme here on my website.
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