U2 to be honored with 2025 Woody Guthrie Prize

U2 is set to be honored with the 2025 Woody Guthrie Prize.

Named after the late folk icon and presented by the Woody Guthrie Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma, the award recognizes “a recipient who embodies the spirit of Woody Guthrie’s social consciousness and musical legacy.”

According to a press release, the Irish rockers “continue a tradition of using music as a force for social change, echoing Guthrie’s belief that songs can help make the world a fairer place.”

“U2 embodies the mission of the Woody Guthrie Prize, using music to confront injustice and inspire action,” Cady Shaw, senior director of the Woody Guthrie Center, says. “By presenting the 2025 Woody Guthrie Prize to U2, we honor a legacy of music that continues to challenge who we are and connect us the world over.”

U2’s Bono and The Edge will be on hand to accept this year’s prize at the ceremony on Oct. 21 at Tulsa’s Cain’s Ballroom. U2 previously played the venue in 1981 on their The Boy Tour.

Previous Woody Guthrie Prize winners include Bruce Springsteen, John Mellencamp, Joan Baez and Rage Against the Machine’s Tom Morello.

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