Bono and Edge to join Martin Garrix on UEFA Euro Song

Original Story by Aaron J. Sams (2021-05-04)

Update: May 11, 2021

A press release claiming to be from Sony Music Netherlands has been shared with us. Sony distributes Garrix’s STMPD RCRDS label on which the single is being released.

The release details that Bono has written the lyrics for “We Are the People” and has created melodies for the song. The Edge has created the lead guitar riffs for the song, based on a musical track that Garrix had previously developed. The song is said to address the challenges that the world is facing at the moment, and reflects on positivity, hope and determination which are the keys for success for any team.

For those asking about a physical release, we have no information confirmed, however, STMPD tends to just issue digital releases. When we have more information about the release formats we will set up a discography entry.

Garrix has also started a countdown for the single which is released on Friday, May 14. He has been using a new image of himself, with Bono and The Edge. With four days left to release he posted the photo on Instagram. Today, with 3 days left he has posted the photo on Twitter.

Update: May 7, 2021

A few instrumental snippets of the Garrix track for the Euro 2020 tournament have been heard in advertisements for the tournament. This is likely a different recording to what will be released. You can hear a clip below:

You can also see the orchestra being recorded for the song in this episode of The Martin Garrix Show, we’ve started it at one of the orchestra bits, but rewind to the start for more of the songs. This is the broadcast we mentioned a few days back.

Many thanks to Samarth on Twitter.

Update: May 6, 2021

  • The song is called “We Are the People”
  • The song is being released via STMPD RCRDS, Martin Garrix’s label.
  • The song can now be pre-saved on Spotify via the label. Pre-saving the song will also subscribe you to Martin Garrix’s UEFA EURO 2020 Playlist on Spotify.
  • The photo being used as a placeholder for “We Are the People” is the same photo that Garrix shared the other day in black and white, formatted to be square.
  • The “We Are the People” playlist can be accessed here on Spotify without going through the sign up procedure above. The new track with Bono and The Edge does not yet appear in the list.

Original Story:

Today, Dutch DJ and record producer Martin Garrix announced his new single is being released on May 14, 2021 and will feature Bono and The Edge. Garrix who hails from The Netherlands was announced to be the official DJ of the UEFA Euro 2020 tournament. The song with Bono and The Edge will be part of the music developed for that tournament. Garrix is working on the official anthem of the tournament, as well as walkout music for the opening ceremony, music used in official broadcasts of the tournament and music to be used throughout the tournament. The collaboration between Garrix and UEFA was announced in October 2019, and a preview of an instrumental portion of the track was shared at that time during the announcement. Speaking on his Martin Garrix Show, Garrix spoke about contributing the music to such an event, “The final game will be watched more than 600 million times – one game! To be able to make music for such a huge tournament… my brain explodes.” Garrix describes the song he has developed as being “euphoric” and being a song to “bring people together.”

The song with Bono and The Edge has been tipped by Garrix to launch on May 14, and he shared an image of the three of them together on his social media accounts. The song is called “We Are The People We’ve Been Waiting For.” If that phrase sounds familiar, you may have a long memory. Back when Bono launched (RED) in October 2006, he and Bobby Shriver met with the President George W. Bush aboard Air Force One while in Chicago. They brought him a bag of goodies from the (RED) campaign, and the phrase “we are the people we’ve been waiting for” was said to have been shared with the President by Bono. So the phrase has been around for some time on Bono’s tongue.

The song for the UEFA Euro 2020 tournament was developed with composer Franck van der Heijden, and pianist Giorgio Tuinfort. The orchestral version of the song includes strings on the track by musician, Frank Van Essen.

When initially announced in October 2019, it was expected that the debut of the music would only be a few months away. The tournament, originally scheduled to take place from June 12 until July 12, 2020 was postponed a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It is now scheduled to start on June 11, 2021. The main tournament song will be performed in full at the opening ceremony at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome, but it is not known if Bono and The Edge will be present.

Garrix has been teasing the song for a little while now, including this video released yesterday:

We’ll have more information about the song as it becomes available. A video for the song is being filmed in London starting on May 4, and Bono and The Edge have joined Garrix in London for the video shot. The photo of the three together posted by Garrix to his social media accounts was taken yesterday when all three were together in London.

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