U2UV Worldwide Broadcasts

Original Story by Aaron J. Sams (2024-04-22)

Airings of U2’s final performance at Sphere have started on FM Radio stations worldwide after a month long exclusivity period on SiriusXM. We’ve been keeping an eye on these airings, which have ranged from just three songs, all the way up to the full performance being broadcast. If you look below you’ll find some notes on each of the broadcasts to date.

These are free broadcasts in most cases, but some of the online stations have required a subscription for better quality. In the US and Canada the program did not air free, due to U2’s radio station U2 X-Radio being on a paid subscription service. The only way to hear the program in the US and Canada is to subscribe to SiriusXM as a monthly subscriber. One perk of subscription, it did air for a month on demand on SiriusXM prior to any other broadcasts.

The free broadcasts started on April 18, 2024 with a one hour highly edited version of the show on Absolute Radio in the UK. The final announced broadcast will be on WDR2 in Germany on May 25, 2024. Most broadcasts so far have contained the full show.

Although we do include some notes on quality of the internet streams below, please note that these quality parameters are not set by U2 and are the settings generally in use at the radio stations for all programming.

Let’s take a look at some of the broadcasts:

SiriusXM
Date: March 17, 2024
Location: USA and Canada
Restricted: Yes, Region restricted, and subscription required
Quality: Approximate 256kbps Webstream at High Quality / Satellite Radio Feed / Lesser Quality on Demand Streams
Full Show: Yes (23 Songs)
Notes: The SiriusXM broadcast was the first and the full show is presented here minus a bit of Bono’s conversation between songs, and the “Blackbird” snippet at the end of the show. The broadcast includes “Lemon” (Remix) and the choral intro to “Zoo Station”. Additionally the program was preceeded by a 1-hour interview recorded at Zoo Station in Las Vegas. This show aired at a higher quality live on the station than it did on demand. The program was only available to monthly subscribers to the station, and was not available free in USA / Canada. The on-demand programming is said to be ending on April 17, 2024, but as of writing this article is still available.

Absolute Radio
Date: April 18, 2024
Location: UK
Restricted: Yes, Region restricted, Subscription required for better resolution
Quality: 192kbps (Subscription), 128kbps (Non-Subscription) / FM Radio
Full Show: No (10 Songs)
Notes: This is a heavily edited broadcast to fit it into a one-hour time slot on the station. Adam Clayton does a custom introduction to the show (over top of the choral intro to “Zoo Station”, although “Zoo Station is chopped from the broadcast.) There are breaks during the show where the DJ can be heard over top of the program, and there are breaks for commercials as well. This station is region restricted meaning those outside of the UK could not listen. A subscription to the station increases the quality of the online stream. The program repeated on April 20, 2024 with a different host, but the same recorded material from U2. Songs Played: Even Better than the Real Thing / Mysterious Ways / One / Angel of Harlem / Don’t Dream its Over / Elevation / Atomic City / Where the Streets Have No Name / With or Without You / Beautiful Day

Absolute Classic Rock
Date: April 18, 2024
Location: UK
Restricted: Yes, Region restricted, Subscription required for better resolution
Quality: 192kbps (Subscription), 128kbps (Non-Subscription) / FM Radio
Full Show: No (0 Songs)
Notes: Although listed at U2.com as a source to listen to these shows on, Absolute Classic Rock did not air the concert on this date. Nor did it air the show on April 20, 2024 which was also listed. Further, Absolute Classic Rock did not air the show at all to date.

RockFM
Date: April 19, 2024
Location: Spain
Restricted: No
Quality: 62kbps / FM Radio
Full Show: Yes (23 Songs)
Notes: This is a full show, and it is edited the same as the SiriusXM broadcast with “Blackbird” edited out and the same Bono discussions removed. The broadcast however is interupted a number of times by the host doing station breaks. After “Mysterious Ways” the broadcast seems to switch off, with Def Leppard’s “Hysteria” filling the airwaves (and all 4-minutes are played) but the show comes back after the commercial break that follows, returning to “One”. The show does not include the “Lemon” (Remix) and cuts off most of the introduction to “Zoo Station” and what remains has the DJ speaking over it. The show was preceeded by an hour of mixed music but also discussions with U2 fans about their U2 memories. Available for free, and no region restrictions meaning people outside of Spain could listen.

FM Yokohama Radio Hits Radio
Date: April 20, 2024
Location: Japan
Restricted: Yes
Quality: 48kbps / FM Radio
Full Show: No (3 Songs)
Notes: This is a partial show, with only three songs played in full. The show starts with Bono’s introduction to “Vertigo” and the presenter stops to talk in between the songs. While the presenter is speaking additional songs can be heard in the background, and some interview moments with Bono and The Edge are included from the interview taped at Zoo Station. Although available for free, this one was regionally restricted meaning people outside of Japan could not listen. Songs Played: Vertigo / With or Without You / Where the Streets Have No Name (“Atomic City” and “40” can be heard in the background behind the presenter.)

Virgin Radio
Date: April 20, 2024
Location: Italy
Restricted: No
Quality: 128kbps / FM Radio
Full Show: Yes (23 Songs)
Notes: This is the full show, and it starts with the “Lemon” (Remix). The remix is played under an announcer speaking, and a station identifier done by Adam Clayton. The voice overs go quiet as the lyrics of “Lemon” start. Between the song we hear voice overs by Adam Clayton and Gavin Friday identifying what is on the air, and these are played over the crowd noise. This may have been regionally blocked, as people reported being able to listen to the streaming just find during the day but were cut off when the U2 special began.

Radio Veronica
Date: April 20, 2024
Location: The Netherlands
Restricted: No
Quality: 128kbps / FM Radio
Full Show: Yes (23 Songs)
Notes: Full show, starting out with the “Lemon” remix. There is no announcer after the music starts, and the mix is complete. There is no speaking over the broadcast throughout. There are commercials present, and the show takes breaks for these. Like the SiriusXM broadcast, the “Blackbird” snippet is cut from the stream, as is some of Bono’s talking between songs. None of the Zoo Station interview material is included in this show. The show is not regionally blocked, and can be listened to via the internet worldwide for free. The full presentation runs two and a half hours.

Greatest Hits Radio
Date: April 21, 2024
Location: UK
Restricted: Yes
Quality: 192kbps (Subscription), 128kbps (Non-Subscription) / FM Radio
Full Show: No (8 Songs)
Notes: Greatest Hits Radio is part of the Absolute Radio Group of stations. Like Absolute Radio, Greatest Hits Radio plays an edited version of the broadcast, but it is different than the Absolute Radio broadcast. This one includes “Desire” and edits out other tracks. There are breaks during the show where the DJ can be heard over top of the program, and there are breaks for commercials as well. Interview clips from Zoo Station including U2 and Gavin Friday can be heard, and Adam Clayton does custom introductions for the show. This station is region restricted meaning those outside of the UK could not listen. A subscription to the station increases the quality of the online stream. Songs Played: Mysterious Ways / One / Desire / Angel of Harlem / Where the Streets Have No Name / With or Without You / Even Better Than the Real Thing / Beautiful Day

Planet Rock Radio
Date: April 20-21, 2024
Location: UK
Restricted: Yes
Quality: 192kbps (Subscription), 128kbps (Non-Subscription) / FM Radio
Full Show: No (3 Songs)
Notes: Planet Rock is part of the Absolute Radio Group of stations. This station was advertised via U2.com as “Tracks across the weekend”. Instead of a full broadcast, Planet Rock has access to the Live from Sphere tracks, but only plays three throughout the weekend. Like Absolute Radio, although available for free, it is regionally restricted, so people outside of the UK cannot listen. A small subscription fee gets the home stream in better quality. These tracks were not played back to back but were spread out over the weekend. Songs Played: Desire / Atomic City / Where the Streets Have No Name

TodayFM
Date: April 21, 2024
Location: Ireland
Restricted: No
Quality: 128kbps / FM Radio
Full Show: Yes (23 Songs)
Notes: TodayFM starts the show with the Brian Eno choral piece which introduces “Zoo Station”, and the “Lemon” remix is not heard on this broadcast. The broadcast itself runs over two hours, and is a complete show. There is the occasional radio ID over the broadcast, however, it’s between the songs over the crowd noise. No interview content is included with this broadcast, just the show itself. TodayFM is not region restricted which means those outside of Ireland could tune in to the broadcast.

TodayFM
Triple M
Date: April 22, 2024
Location: Australia
Restricted: No
Quality: 128kbps / FM Radio
Full Show: No (16 Songs)
Notes: Triple M went all out, airing the show on their main stations throughout Australia at 7pm, but also airing it on Classic Rock MMM at 5pm. Sadly it is not the full show. The show cuts out the “Lemon” (Remix) and starts with the choral intro to “Zoo Station”. Throughout the program there are quick radio station IDs between the songs during the crowd noise. But they also take breaks for the DJ to talk between songs, and to play ads. This means a number of songs are cut out of the broadcast, including five songs from the main set, and “40” is dropped from the encore. The program ends with “Beautiful Day” instead. The station requires an account set up to stream more than about 5 minutes of audio. But once an account is set up the programs are not regionally restricted, and could be heard outside of Australia. Songs Played: Zoo Station / The Fly / Even Better than the Real Thing / Mysterious Ways / One / Until the End of the World / All I Want is You / Desire / Angel of Harlem / Don’t Dream It’s Over / Elevation / Atomic City / Vertigo / Where the Streets Have No Name / With or Without You / Beautiful Day

Alfa 91.3
Date: April 22, 2024 (8pm)
Location: Mexico
Restricted: No (16 Songs)
Quality: 32kbps / FM Radio
Notes: The program opens with “Lemon” (Remix) which is played pretty much in full, with only a bit of talk over top at the start. The show then makes it’s first cut with removing “Tryin’ To Throw Your Arms Around the World”, but the next cut is more severe. Bono’s introduction of “Don’t Dream it’s Over” is left in full in the broadcast, but instead of hearing that song, we skip to “Elevation” instead cutting out a number of songs. “40” is heard at the end of the broadcast. Only minor interruptions for station IDs throughout the show. No interview content is included with this broadcast, just the show itself. AlfaFM is not region restricted which means those outside of Mexico could tune in to the broadcast. Songs Played: Zoo Station / The Fly / Even Better than the Real Thing / Mysterious Ways / One / Until the End of the World / All I Want is You / Desire / Angel of Harlem / Elevation / Atomic City / Vertigo / Where the Streets Have No Name / With or Without You / Beautiful Day / “40”

RTL2
Date: April 24, 2024
Location: France
Restricted: No
Quality: 64kbps / FM Radio
Notes: Although the broadcast cuts out the “Lemon” remix the rest of the show is complete, although streamed in low quality with many station IDs. Ahead of the main show some of the Zoo Station interview can be heard, with a translation overtop of the band speaking. The full show broadcast program is made available on demand without the interview at a higher quality. (See below)
Replay: 256kbs [LINK]

89FM
Date: April 28, 2024
Location: Brazil
Restricted: No
Quality: 128kbps / FM Radio
Notes: The broadcast opens with the radio station talking over the choral opening of the show. “Lemon” is not played. No interview pieces are heard. Station IDs and commentary are heard throughout the show, but respectfully done between songs over the crowd noise. Show is complete through to the end of “40”. 89FM is not region restricted which means those outside of Ireland could tune in to the broadcast.

Rock Antenne
Date: April 28, 2024 (20:00)
Location: Germany / Austria
Restricted: No
Quality: 128kbps / FM Radio
Notes: Rock Antenne airs the show on its German (Germany / Bayern / Hamburg) and Austrian stations. Stream starts with the “Lemon” remix and announcer stopped speaking ahead of “Lemon”. There are breaks in the performance for station IDs and ads, but the show is complete otherwise up until “Atomic City” (German Stations) or “Streets” (Austria) – at that time the show stops, and the rest of the encore is not heard. The differences in where it cuts off is dependent on the ads aired through the show. (Austria had less advertising so fit more music into the programming time.) Rock Antenne is not region restricted which means those outside of Ireland could tune in to the broadcast on all four stations.

HR1
Date: May 2, 2024
Location: Germany
Restricted: No
Quality: 192kbps / FM Radio
Notes: Although advertised on U2.com as happening on May 5, this actually aired three days earlier on May 2. We can confirm it was a two hour presentation, and that the final song was “Beautiful Day” but as we did not hear the whole programme, cannot comment further. One of the better quality radio streams.

U2.Com Subscribers
Date: May 3 – May 5, 2024
Location: Worldwide
Restricted: Subscription to U2.Com required
Quality: 256kbps embedded in a 1080p Video
Notes: Only place to see the Zoo Station interview, as well as hearing it. The whole show is present, and plays continuously. Same editing choices as the SiriusXM broadcast, and a similar quality on the stream.

Still to Air:

NRW Lokalradios
Date: May 10, 2024
Location: Germany
Restricted:
Quality:
Notes:

WDR2
Date: May 25, 2024
Location: Germany
Restricted:
Quality:
Notes:

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