Bono Goes Back to School

Bono has agreed to deliver the commencement address at the University of Pennsylvania on May 17th in Philadelphia.

The visit will be the U2 frontman's second address to a graduating Ivy League class. In June 2001, he appeared at Harvard's Class Day, giving a twenty-minute speech that touched on music as well as his charitable work to relieve third world debt and the AIDS epidemic in Africa.

"With his tireless efforts and use of his celebrity to remind us of our moral duties as citizens of the globe, Bono has been a powerful force for change," said Judith Rodin, president of the University of Pennsylvania, "galvanizing the action of presidents, countries and the general public."

For appearing at the University's 248th commencement, Bono will receive an honorary Doctor of Laws degree.

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Song Stories

“1999”

Prince | 1982

“I don’t consider myself a great poet,” Prince told Rolling Stone. “I just know I’m here to say what’s on my mind.” In the case of the apocalyptic party anthem “1999,” he was worried about then-president Ronald Reagan’s foreign policies. The song’s melody is based on a riff borrowed from the Mamas and Papas’ “Monday, Monday,” and Prince originally envisioned the first verse with three-part harmony but later split the vocals between himself and members of the Revolution. Because Warner Bros., with whom Prince was locked in a contractual battle, owned the original’s masters, Prince rerecorded the song and appropriately released that version in 1999.

More Song Stories entries »

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