Bono: Fans Seeking Hope in Music

By Elizabeth Darst

12/20/2001 at 02:47 PM EST

U2 front man Bono finds that music can offer comfort and hope in the face of terror, he told the Los Angeles Times in a recent interview. Growing up in Ireland, which has seen its share of terrorism, Bono, 41, says he has always used music to confront political and spiritual issues. After Sept. 11, music was once again -- if only briefly -- an outlet for expressing fears, sorrow and hope for fans. "I think people were looking for that spirit before Sept. 11, but it has been intensified since then," he told the Times. "People don't just want attitude in music anymore. They want something more genuine because something in the world has changed." U2 was in the middle of a tour when the Sept. 11 attacks took place. Many bands cancelled their performances around that time, but U2 continued to perform, with one especially moving show at New York City's Madison Square Garden. Bono said fans were highly emotional. "I realized the screams were not for us. They were for each other," he said. "It was a real moment in the city, a night of people saying, 'We're still here and we're going to keep going.' "