A lot of people seem to hate Bono. I don't really get it. Yeah, he talks about Africa an awful lot but everyone has their hobby-horse. Some people think he's arrogant; I don't get that impression. He has charisma - that's not arrogance. I've always thought he seems genuinely down to earth when he's interviewed. I guess he has an inflated ego but most rock stars do.
Here are some reasons why I think people don't like Bono:
- People don't like preachers. Paying $200 for a U2 ticket to listen to Bono rant about third world debt isn't something the average consumer wants to deal with.
- He makes people feel guilty. They feel uncomfortable being asked to give money to charities. Instead, they would rather say things like "if Bono gave half his money to Africa then there wouldn't be a problem". He might live an indulgent lifestyle, but he gives a heap of money to charity and spends a lot of his time being an advocate and instigator - more than most celebrities do. Even if he could feed the entire planet for decades with his loose change, why should it be up to one man to do so?
- They think he is fake. People can't comprehend that someone might want to care for human rights in other countries without having some sort of ulterior motive. They just don't believe he could be genuine.
- He has opinions. Strong opinions. Sometimes controversial opinions. Opinions on God, on politics, on humanity. People don't like that.
- His sunglasses. Some people don't like those.
Anyway, I like Bono. I think he's a good bloke. I reckon this Bono-bashing has led to people discrediting his music. It's certainly not very 'cool' to like U2 these days; they're often dismissed as a massively commercial talentless stadium-pop band. They're not an unpopular band, obviously. Millions of people like them, but the average music snob probably doesn't rate them very highly. U2 aren't my favourite band but there's no escaping the fact that Achtung Baby was a great, original and groundbreaking album, or that The Joshua Tree was one of the best albums of the last 30 years. The U2 of the 80s and early 90s were a very daring, exciting and talented band. People tend to overlook this now because they don't like Bono.
I'd be curious to hear other people's thoughts on Bono. Do you like him? Or is he annoying?
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8 comments:
I like the fact that he has two ear rings. Because it would be silly to have just one. If I was going to have ear rings, I would have two.
Symmetry is overrated.
I like him. I like his passion, his strong opinions, the way he uses his fame to 'preach' at people about incredibly important issues, and I like that he puts all that into his music (Sunday Bloody Sunday being a good example, there's an incredible clip on YouTube).
I grew up listening to U2 and I still rate them highly. Good music, great man. And if this makes me uncool then I'm happy to wallow in my uncoolness.
I watched that Sunday Bloody Sunday clip recently (if it's the same one you're thinking of... when he walks through the crowd "NO MORE! NO MORE!" etc?). It is incredible.
Bono is still alright with me.
Amen Pablo
Oh Der one thing with your blog could you go to "Settings" "Site Feed" and next to where it says "Allow Blog Feeds" select "Full" from the drop down menu.
This means that for people get to enjoy your blog in it's full glory via rss.
well said Der, thanks man.
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