U2 veteran The Edge has described a “monumental day” after becoming an Irish citizen.
David Howell Evans, 63, was born in Essex in England to Welsh parents, but his family moved to Ireland when he was just a one-year-old.
His Irish citizenship was conferred at a ceremony in Killarney, Co Kerry on Monday.
Some 7,500 people will officially become Irish citizens across Monday and Tuesday.
He described an “amazingly joyful event”.
“For all of us, a monumental day,” he told RTE, wearing the distinctive hat he is known for, as well as an Irish flag badge on the lapel of his jacket.
“I’m a little tardy on the paperwork – I’ve been living in Ireland since I was one but the time was right and I couldn’t be more proud of my country for all that it represents and all it’s doing.
“It’s showing real leadership right now in the world and this couldn’t have come at a better moment for me.”
The Edge, a guitarist in U2, has been involved with the band since its formation in Dublin in the late 1970s, going on to win scores of music awards.
U2 is also noted for speaking out with songs such as Sunday Bloody Sunday about the shooting of unarmed protesters in Londonderry in 1972 by British soldiers, New Year’s Day which became associated with the Polish Solidarity movement and Pride (In The Name Of Love) in tribute to Martin Luther King Jr.
They also strongly supported efforts to secure peace in Northern Ireland with the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement in 1998.
The band played Sunday Bloody Sunday last month with a call to “stop war” at the Ivors award ceremony.
The performance came as the group became the first Irish songwriters to be awarded an academy fellowship at the 70th year of the awards ceremony, hosted at London’s Grosvenor House.
