Bruce Springsteen Regrets Not Letting Bono Use His Song for AIDS Campaign

Musicians don’t always get what they want, but we rarely hear about it. Bruce Springsteenhelped celebrate Bono of U2 at a film festival. Springsteen, 76, revealed that one of his regrets is rejecting Bono years ago when he asked to use one of his songs for a good cause.

Bruce Springsteen Says He Should’ve Given Bono Rights to His Song

The Boss presented the Harry Belafonte Voices for Social Justice award to Bono, 66, at the Tribeca Film Festival on June 13, according to PEOPLE. The award recognizes artists who use their platform to promote equality, dignity, and human rights.

Bono revealed he wanted to use “Girls in Their Summer Clothes” in a Gap commercial supporting the RED campaign fighting AIDS. “I said, ‘Bruce, this song ‘Girls in Their Summer Clothes,’ this is like one of the great pop songs ever,'” the U2 lead singer said. “He goes, ‘It’s not bad, is it?’ I said, ‘Would you think about using it for a commercial like for RED through Gap?’ You said, ‘No.'”

Springsteen had a humble response to this. “That was a big mistake … I should have said yes,” he said. “That was just a song that I loved, and damn it, I still think back. I said, ‘Bono asked me to put this thing in a commercial on television, I should have f—ing done it, then people would hear it like a hit.’ So I have to apologize, I should have done that.”

Bono and Bobby Shriver started the non-profit organization Red and partnered with brands to raise donations for the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. It has raised $800 million, according to the organization’s website.

This story was originally published by Parade on Jun 14, 2026, where it first appeared in the Entertainment section. Add Parade as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

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