Bono opens up about marriage of 40 years: ‘Friendship can outpace romance’

Bono has opened up about his relationship with his wife of 40 years, Ali Hewson, and how “special” their bond is.

The 62-year-old singer made a rare comment about his marriage at the New Yorker Festival on Friday to discuss his upcoming book, Surrender: 40 Songs, One Story. During an interview with journalist David Remnick, as reported by People, a newly married audience member asked Bono how he’s kept his marriage going for so long.

In response, the U2 frontman explained that there’s a “madness” behind getting married, before describing how important his friendship is with his wife.

“There’s something about knowing that you’re going against the odds. But I would say if you ask me seriously, friendship can outpace romantic love, sometimes,” he said. “And friendship is what myself and Ali have. When you have romantic love and friendship, that’s really something special.”

Bono and Hewson tied the knot back in 1982 and share four children: Jordan, 33; Eve, 31; Elijah, 23; and John, 21.

At the festival on Friday, Bono also recalled how he just celebrated his anniversary, noting how “powerful” the number 40 is to him and his wife.

“Any time either of us got lost, the other would ... be there to get the other one home. And I’m so grateful,” the “Beautiful Day” singer said. “And 40 years is a powerful number for me. That’s a powerful number for Ali. And it was brilliant when we got to 40, and we went, ‘Let’s not f*** this up now.’”

This wasn’t Bono’s first time opening up about his long-lasting marriage. During an interview on The Ellen DeGeneres Show in December 2021, leading up to his 40th anniversary, he said that he’s continued to discover new things about his wife.

“She’s hard to know..She’s a mysterious figure,” he explained. “There’s a lot to learn about her still. And we’re still finding out more and more about each other. Most of its good.”

During his conversation with Remnick, he also spoke candidly about his career, acknowledging that he and his U2 bandmates’ decision to split their finances evenly was “the best thing ever”.

“And those songs are made what they are because of Edge, Adam, and Larry. And I think Edge feels the same,” Bono said. “Our manager used to say to us, ‘You know, it’s not musical differences that break up most bands. It’s the moolah.’ He said, ‘Get that right.’”