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Ed Sheeran inducted U2 into the Fellowship of The Ivors Academy Friday night in London, making them the first Irish group to receive this prestigious honor. As Bono, Edge, Adam, and Larry delivered moving speeches at the 70th edition of the world’s most celebrated gathering of songwriters, they joined an exclusive circle of just 32 legendary artists including Paul McCartney, Kate Bush, and Bruce Springsteen.

Even as they celebrated this career-defining recognition, the band announced news that sent ripples through the music world: after an eight-year gap, U2 are officially back in the studio creating new material. The extended hiatus came as drummer Larry Mullen Jr recovered from neck surgery to address years of damage from their legendary live performances, with what he describes as problems with his “elbows, knees and neck” that sidelined new recording projects save for 2023’s “Atomic City.”

“It was difficult being away because of injury,” Mullen reflected backstage, “so I’m thrilled to be back in a creative environment, even if I’m not 100% there and I’ve got some bits falling off.” His return carries particular emotional weight: “When I was away from the band, I missed it, but I didn’t realise how much I missed it.”

The past decade has seen U2 in an extended period of reflection, mining their catalog while searching for new creative directions. Their 2017 stadium tour celebrating THE JOSHUA TREE served as both nostalgic journey and artistic statement. The pandemic brought different introspection as Bono wrote his memoir “Surrender,” leading the band toward their mostly acoustic SONGS OF SURRENDER reimagining project. Last year’s Las Vegas shows recreated their 1990s Berlin reinvention around ACHTUNG BABY, followed by archival material from HOW TO DISMANTLE AN ATOMIC BOMB sessions.

For Bono, this sustained look backward served a crucial purpose. “We spent a moment thinking about the past – but you do that because you need to understand where that desire to be heard came from,” he explained. “And then you can get to the present and to the future – because the sound of the future is what we’re most interested in. It doesn’t exist yet. It’s ours to make, and that’s what we have the chance to do.”

The Fellowship recognition arrives as U2’s influence feels both established and ongoing. As they return to the studio with Larry Mullen Jr back behind the kit, they face their perpetual challenge: honoring their past while creating something genuinely new. The sound of the future, as Bono puts it, remains unwritten. But if U2’s history teaches us anything, their most compelling work emerges from this tension between reflection and revolution, between understanding where they’ve been and discovering where they’re going.