Gavin Friday, a lifelong friend of Bono and U2's official Creative Director since the mid-1980s, has explained what the role actually involves in an interview with the music Substack publication The New Cue. The account offers a rare glimpse into the tight-knit inner circle U2 have long relied upon, and illustrates how the band value candid, unvarnished feedback from trusted friends over the flattery that surrounds a stadium act.

Friday, formerly of The Virgin Prunes and later a solo artist and collaborator with the likes of Sinéad O'Connor, grew up alongside the band in the Northside of Dublin and has been offering creative critique since they were 15. He recalled that his formal involvement began after The Joshua Tree's success, when Bono rang him and said that, despite playing to 80,000 people a night, "everyone is blowing smoke up our arse" and asked him to watch shows and help improve them. Friday also shared a moment from the band's 360° tour when, engrossed in his notes at the mixing desk, he was repeatedly tapped on the shoulder by Leonard Cohen, leaving him starstruck and blurting out that he owned all of Cohen's albums.