Before the stadiums, the tours, and worldwide fame, Ali was already there.
Bono and Ali Hewson met when they were still students in Dublin, long before U2 became one of the biggest bands in the world. They started dating as teenagers and married in 1982, when he was 22 and his career was just beginning to take off.
Since then, they have made it through more than four decades, four children, and a life shaped by tours, public exposure, and long periods away from home. Bono has said several times that Ali was much more than the person who stood by him as he built his career.
In fact, speaking about her, he said that she often remembers things he has already forgotten and even has a better perspective on his own life. That is why he describes her in a very simple way: “She is my witness. I am hers”.
Ali, moreover, forged her own path beyond being just “Bono’s wife”, taking part in business ventures and social causes while they raised their children together.
Bono went on to become a global star, but the person he met before any of that existed is still the same one who can tell his story from the beginning.