Was it karma or grace?  …. Little did we know last week when in the throes of making our site selection, but U. S. News & World Report was getting ready to rank Durham at #5 on their 2009 list of “Best Places to Live” in the United States.

We’ll be there for just one weekend this fall, but we’re looking forward to experiencing this Best Place.

No wonder the band that says “Live is Where We Live,” first chose Durham for their Oct. 3 concert, only to then have to move it to Raleigh.  (Still close enough for us!)

We are pleased to announce The Hype and The Feedback: A Conference Exploring the Music, Work and Influence of U2 will be hosted by the H. M. Michaux School of Education at North Carolina Central University in Durham, from October 2 - 4, 2009.

North Carolina Central is the nation’s first public liberal arts college founded for African-Americans.

Our U2 conference staff wishes to thank Chancellor Charles Nelms for his vision and leadership, as well as the NCCU community and the city of Durham for extending this invitation to have the first ever academic conference about U2.

Our thanks also go to the great people with the DurhamCares organization for their work in facilitating The Hype and The Feedback coming to Durham.

Conference events will start Friday evening, Oct. 2, and will conclude on Sunday afternoon, Oct. 4.

Please watch our conference website for many more updates during the rest of this month: more about the conference program; more about NCCU; more about Durham; and more about the Raleigh-Durham area. If you have not signed up for email alerts, you can do so here.

Some notices:

• Registration: We plan to open registration in July.  Registration will be handled through our registration page and we anticipate offering conference tickets at levels from $90 - $200.  Registration will close when we have reached capacity.

• Lodging: We are securing a range of hotel options at a U2 Conference discount rate for the nights of Oct. 1 - 4. Rates will range from $70 - $110 a night. Registrants should make lodging arrangements on their own.  Information on the conference hotels will be here later this month.

• Transportation: Raleigh-Durham International Airport (RDU) serves the area and is about 15 miles from Durham.  Information on transportation suggestions from the airport to Durham and for getting around in the area will be here later this month.

• Program: A tentative schedule for the program is here, with a list of the accepted paper presentations here.  We are working on arranging the papers into panel sessions.  Please keep an eye on the program schedule as it will have regular updates to it.

• U2’s concert in Raleigh: U2’s 360° Tour plays at the Carter-Finley Stadium in Raleigh, Saturday evening, Oct. 3, starting at 7:00 p.m.  Their concert date falls right in the middle of our conference weekend.  We will conclude Saturday’s program by 4:00 p.m. to allow time to get to the show. (Raleigh is about 25 miles from Durham.  You can view a map here.) Then, when we re-convene Sunday morning we should have even more to talk about! Conference registration DOES NOT include a ticket to U2’s concert.  Tickets are still available here.

Thank you to everyone who has been with us for many months now.  We appreciate your patience, your encouragement and your enthusiasm for the conference.  Thanks again to the H. M. Michaux School of Education at North Carolina Central University.

We look forward to seeing you in Durham!

Questions? Please use our contact form.

Dear Oxford: We regret to say we won’t be having the first U2 conference in your city, but you all know how special a place you have and we hope the world comes to you someday to experience your culture, warmth and hospitality.  (We just hope the whole world doesn’t come to you all at once. Maybe spread it out over a few weekends?!)

We are now all fans of Oxford and your love of music, especially the music of U2, has brought us together.  That, and one incredible fan of U2 and Oxford named Misty Phillips.  Thank you, Misty, for all the help.  You know how much you’ve done and we know that Oxford should be grateful to have you.

Thanks also to Wayne Andrews with The Powerhouse and the Yoknapatawpha Arts Council, Scott at Rooster’s, Proud Larry’s, The Lyric Theatre, Square Books, Off Square Books, Square Books Jr., Port Kaigler at Ole Miss, Doug at The AMP, Chico at Main Squeeze (killer wheatgrass!), Laura and the Oak Hill Stables Bed & Breakfast (it’s paradise, with a lot of friendly horses), George with 47 Million Reasons, Bill Russell at the L. Q. C. Lamar House, and last, but not least, Stephen, Lucas and Miriam.

Thank you all for your passionate support and for treating our staff with love and respect.  We’re looking forward to seeing you at the conference and, who knows, maybe a concert!

Scott Calhoun and the U2 Conference Staff

The waiting is the hardest part . . . (sorry, wrong conference).  We apologize for getting you all excited about having a decision on June 1, but we are working through some matters with both potential locations and need just a little more time.

We should know soon.  Thanks for your continued patience.  We think it will be worth the wait.