U2 at the Grammys Through the Years
U2 is making Grammy history again. The Irish rockers will perform at the 2024 Grammy Awards on Sunday, Feb. 4, delivering the first-ever broadcast performance from the Las Vegas Sphere, where the band is currently in residence.
The performance from the new immersive entertainment arena is another major Grammy moment for U2, who are among the most-awarded acts in the awards’ history. Bono, Adam Clayton, The Edge, and Larry Mullen Jr. took home the band’s first trophy in 1988. They’ve since won 22 awards from 46 nominations and have performed live at the ceremony numerous times. Let’s look back at some of U2’s Grammy moments through the years.
Thanks to albums such as War and The Unforgettable Fire, U2 was already a major force in rock music when they earned their first Grammy nominations in 1988. That year, they took home two trophies, including Album of the Year, for The Joshua Tree.
In 1994, Bono presented legendary crooner Frank Sinatra with a Grammy Legend Award at the 36th Annual Grammy Awards. Bono sang “I’ve Got You Under My Skin” with Sinatra on the latter’s album Duets.
The Academy’s voting members nominated U2 several times throughout the ’90s. They won Grammys for their albums Achtung Baby and Zooropa and continued to dominate at the awards in the next decade. In 2001, they won three awards for the song “Beautiful Day” from the album All That You Can’t Leave Behind.
At the Grammy Awards in 2002, pop sensation Britney Spears presented U2 with an award for their song “Stuck in a Moment You Can’t Get Out Of.”
At the 47th Annual Grammy Awards in 2005, U2 frontman Bono teamed up with Tim McGraw, Stone Temple Pilots’ Scott Weiland, Stevie Wonder, Alicia Keys, and other artists for a performance of “Across the Universe” in honor of the victims of the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami.
In 2006, R&B icon Mary J. Blige joined U2 on-stage at the 48th Grammy Awards to perform the band’s song “One.” U2 won five Grammys that year, including Album of the Year and Song of the Year.
The Academy members didn’t nominate U2 for the 60th Annual Grammy Awards in 2018. But Bono and The Edge were on stage to present Bruno Mars with the trophy for Album of the Year for 24K Magic.
In September 2023, U2 kicked off their residency at the Sphere, the world’s largest spherical structure at 516 feet wide and 366 feet tall. The jaw-dropping venue has been the band’s home for the past few months, and they’ve been wowing crowds with their “U2:UV Achtung Baby Live at Sphere” show.
Bono has trumpeted the Sphere as a one-of-a-kind place to see a live music performance.
“Most music venues are sports venues,” he old Apple Music 1’s Zane Lowe (via Digital Music News). “They’re built for sports. They’re not built for music; they’re not built for art. So this building was built for immersive experiences in cinema and performance. It was not built for; you can’t come here and see an ice hockey game.”
U2’s residency at the Sphere runs through March 2. The 2024 Grammys air live on Sunday, Feb. 4, at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on CBS.
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