U2 frontman Bono believes the new release of politically inspired songs “couldn’t wait” as the Irish rock band voiced its disdain for supporters of President Donald Trump.
The new six-song EP titled “Days of Ash” was interestingly released on Wednesday, and touted as “an immediate response to current events and inspired by the many extraordinary and courageous people fighting on the frontlines of freedom.”
Blasting Trump supporters as “the people of the lie,” one of the tracks is an ode to the anti-ICE activist, Renee Good, who was shot in Minneapolis last month when she drove her vehicle into agents.
On this Ash Wednesday, Days Of Ash is released as a self-contained collection of five new songs and a selected poem – American Obituary, The Tears Of Things, Song Of The Future, Wildpeace, One Life At A Time and Yours Eternally (ft. Ed Sheeran & Taras Topolia). This new EP is a… pic.twitter.com/iagPGWRLEB
— U2 (@U2) February 18, 2026
“Four of the five tracks are about individuals – a mother, a father, a teenage girl whose lives were brutally cut short – and a soldier who’d rather be singing but is ready to die for the freedom of his country,” the band’s social media account posted.
“Renee Good born to die free / American mother of three / Seventh day January / A bullet for each child, you see,” Bono sings in “American Obituary.”
“America will rise / against the people of the lie,” the song continues, with the chorus, “I love you more / than hate loves war.”
A pro-Palestinian song is also included in the new release, titled “The Tears of Things,” for the Palestinian activist Awdah Hathaleen, who was killed last year by an Israeli settler.
“These EP tracks couldn’t wait; these songs were impatient to be out in the world,” Bono said, according to The Independent. “They are songs of defiance and dismay, of lamentation.”
“Songs of celebration will follow, we’re working on those now… because for all the awfulness we see normalized daily on our small screens, there’s nothing normal about these mad and maddening times, and we need to stand up to them before we can go back to having faith in the future. And each other,” he added.
The 65-year-old singer told The Sun that all of the songs on the EP “are of the moment we wish we weren’t in… but are.”
“The songs being presented here are all reactions to present-day anxieties, some knee-jerk, some more considered… all likely to offend or annoy some parties, but that’s kind of our job!” Bono added.
And plenty of social media users weighed in to let the band know just how annoying the lecturing is.
Gee, just what we wanted. Old, has been British asses lecturing America
— Trippe Kimbrell (@Trippekimbrell) February 19, 2026
U2’s new EP is total shit—poem to Renee Good is peak Bono, as he ignores rape & murder of innocent American girls & trafficking of young central & south American girls—seems he just gets his news from CNN/MSNOW—U2 jumped the shark in late ‘90s so just needs to fade away w/ grace.
— Matt A. Mayer (@ohiomatt) February 18, 2026
Just the thing no one asked for.
— Victor Reeeee (@EmTeaVe) February 19, 2026
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Originally from New York, Powers graduated from New York University and eventually made her way to sunny South Florida. Powers also contributes to BizPac Review.
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