U2 has been performing Crowded House’s “Don’t Dream It’s Over” in concert at the band’s Sphere residency recently, and before Saturday night’s show, the introduction to that song extended far longer than usual, as Bono paid tribute to the dream of Alexei Navalny, the Russian dissident who died in prison days earlier.
The singer spoke up for the freedom of the Ukrainian people and against Russian leader Vladimir Putin — who many believe is directly responsible for the political prisoner’s still-unexplained death — before leading the crowd in a chant of Navalny’s name.
“Next week it’ll be two years since Putin invaded and tried to destroy the hard-won freedoms” of the Ukrainian people, Bono said. “Next it’ll be Poland, next it’ll be Lithuania, East Germany; who knows where this man will or won’t go. To these people freedom is not just a word in a song. For these people freedom is the most important word in the world — so important that Ukrainians are fighting and dying for it. And it’s so important that Alexei Navalny chose to give his up,” the singer continued, referring to the dissident’s voluntary choice to return to Russia in 2021, where he was immediately arrested upon arrival and sentenced to the remote Arctic penal colony where he died.
“Apparently Putin would never, ever say his name. So I thought tonight, the people who believe in freedom must say his name. Not just remember it, but say it,” Bono urged, leading the crowd in a lengthy “Alexei Navalny” chant over the opening chords of the Crowded House perennial.
Earlier in his emotional address to the audience, Bono likened the acoustic mid-section of the show, in which “Don’t Dream It’s Over” is placed, and talked about the busking tradition, including a recent pop-up performance in Dublin on Christmas Eve. More toward his eventual point, he segued into reminiscing about how he and Edge went to Kyiv to play in a subway station there.
“Edge and I got to stand with some people in that city in Ukraine as they stood in a train station which was a converted bomb shelter… as they watched for the train to arrive with the rest of the free world on it. And we were proud to busk on that occasion.” The singer added, pointedly, “They’re still waiting for some of that train to arrive. America, you’re so generous, but let’s get these people what they need.”
Navalny was reported dead at the Arctic penal colony where he was imprisoned last week, days after appearing in good spirits at a court hearing. President Joe Biden has said the U.S. holds Putin responsible for the death, as Navalny associates continue to lobby for the release of his body.
Bono’s plea to America referred to the ongoing headlines about fresh aid for Ukraine’s military efforts against the Russian invasion being held up amid congressional infighting.
