Vault: How Bert Met Bono...

Summary

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The Bert Show — "Vault: How Bert Met Bono..."

Host: Bert Weiss & The Bert Show Cast
Date: January 22, 2026
Podcast: Pionaire Podcasting

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Episode Overview

This episode centers on host Bert Weiss's remarkable mission to get his wife, Stacy, a longtime U2/Bono superfan, in the same room as her musical hero. What unfolds is a comical and heartfelt saga from stalking hotel lobbies to landing an unexpected, life-affirming encounter with Bono himself—plus some bonus late-night hijinks. Throughout, Bert and his co-hosts deliver with their signature blend of humor, authenticity, and relatable anxiety.

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Key Topics and Highlights

The U2 Obsession: Why Bono Matters to Bert’s Family

• U2 as the Soundtrack of Love:

  • Bert recounts that U2’s music has been woven into every milestone of his relationship with Stacy—falling in love, their wedding song, even the birth of their son.
  • "Our wedding song was a U2 song. Our son was born at Northside while a CD of U2 played in the background. So, I would say we’re both fans. I would say my wife is a much bigger fan than I am." (00:00)

• Stacy: The Original Superfan:

  • Stacy introduced Bert to U2, and her connection is so deep she feels Bono “speaks to her.”
  • "She was a fan before I came. She introduced me to U2. She was there way before I was." (00:41)

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The Chase: Turning Tips Into Action

• $500 Reward for a Bono Sighting:

  • Bert announced a $500 bounty for credible leads to help him get his wife in front of Bono, sparking a flood of tips and tactical support from listeners.
  • "I put up a $500 reward for anybody that gave me tips and leads that would lead me to Bono. And those leads changed the game big time." (00:41)

• Planning the Stakeout:

  • Armed with details on hotels, private parties, and secret meetings, Bert orchestrated a weekend-long stakeout—with backup plans to intercept Bono at any public moment.
  • "We knew about two private parties that they were having...and I got confirmation on all of those. They all actually happened." (01:54)

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The Wild Break: The Arena Call and Meeting Bono

• A Last-Minute Offer:

  • As Bert and Stacy raced to the concert, they received a call from the Phillips Arena staff: a chance to get into a hospitality party where, just maybe, Bono would appear.
  • "On the way down to the concert, I got a call...there’s a slim chance that the guys in the band will be there before the actual show." (02:31)

• The Room Where It Happened:

  • Bert and Stacy, nerves on edge, walk into the hospitality lounge—so anxious, they casually stroll right by Bono himself.
  • "We walked right by him. Now, he was surrounded by like nine people, but it wasn’t this feeding frenzy..." (04:23)

Memorable Quote

• "Turn around. So I turn around, and sure enough, there’s Bono. No. Yeah, I didn’t even see him. Stacy and I walked right by him." — Bert (04:00)

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The Bono Encounter: Ice Breakers, Photos, and Heartfelt Words

• Navigating the Crowd:
  • With a little strategizing (involving Sanjay Gupta from CNN), Bert and Stacy maneuver for a chance—and, as Bono is swept away to stage, Bert interjects:
  • “I sort of stand right in front of him and I extend my hand and I say to him, I would never, ever forgive myself...if I didn’t shake your hand.” (06:51)

Notable Quotes

• "Can I introduce you to my wife?" — Bert to Bono (07:13)

• "I just want you to know how much I admire your wife, Allie." — Stacy to Bono (08:25)

• "Thanks, that’s really, really cool." — Bono in response to Stacy (08:27)

• "I want to thank you for the music you provided my family." — Bert to Bono (09:08)

• "And he looked at me with a really curious look, like, what the hell does that mean?" — Bert recounting Bono’s reaction (08:33)

• Snapshot Snafu:

  • The first photo fails, but Bono graciously returns for a retake despite being pulled toward stage.
  • "Bono walks back into the picture, puts his arm around Stacy, takes a picture with Stacy and me, and then begins to walk off." (08:08)

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Aftermath: The Hotel (and the Failed Party Crash)

• On Cloud Nine:

  • The couple is buzzing; Stacy is overcome with emotion—Bert shares a photo of her "bawling like a baby" after meeting Bono.
  • "It really meant way more to her than it did me. In fact, I took a picture right after we met him and she’s bawling like a baby..." (14:22)

• Late-Night Antics:

  • Back at the hotel, they find their room adjacent to the VIP lounge, perfectly positioned to witness the U2 afterparty.
  • Hilarity ensues as Stacy, tipsy from the night, tries to get into the party and ends up creepily spying through the lounge’s window.
  • "My wife is drunk inside of that window...pretty much...breathing on the glass..." (12:37)

• Kindness of Security:

  • Even Bono’s security guard is gentle: "These guys have had 15,000 eyes staring at them for the last two hours. So they’d really like alone time with their family." (13:12)

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Reflections: Bono’s Character and the Perfect Ending

• Bono Exceeds Expectations:

  • Bert notes Bono’s generosity with his fans and his lack of entourage, confirming the humility people have written about.
  • "He was just such a nice guy that I understand why he’s so likable and people don’t want to tear him down. It totally met the expectation." (14:49)
  • "He is everything that has been written about him." (14:49)

• The Takeaway:

  • The encounter was "perfect," especially for Stacy, and will be immortalized on their mantle forever.
  • "It couldn’t have been any better, to be honest with you." (14:23)

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Notable Quotes & Moments (with Timestamps)

• [00:41] Bert: "She was a fan before I came. She introduced me to U2."
• [04:00] Bert: "Turn around. So I turn around, and sure enough, there’s Bono."
• [06:51] Bert: "I would never, ever forgive myself if I didn’t shake your hand."
• [08:25] Stacy: "I just want you to know how much I admire your wife, Allie."
• [08:27] Bono: "Thanks, that’s really, really cool."
• [09:08] Bert: "I want to thank you for the music you provided my family."
• [12:37] Bert: "My wife is drunk inside of that window...breathing on the glass..."
• [14:22] Bert: "It really meant way more to her than it did me. In fact, I took a picture right after we met him and she’s bawling like a baby..."
• [14:49] Bert: "He was just such a nice guy that I understand why he’s so likable and people don’t want to tear him down. It totally met the expectation."

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Important Segments & Timestamps

• 00:00–01:54: U2’s importance to the Weiss family and the stakeout plan
• 01:54–04:22: The hunt: tips, plans, and the $500 reward
• 04:22–06:50: The face-to-face moment at the hospitality lounge
• 06:51–09:40: The encounter: anxiety, photos, meaningful words to Bono
• 10:07–12:37: Hotel aftermath, witnessing Bono’s party, and party crasher fail
• 12:37–14:23: Gentle security, emotional aftermath, and reflection
• 14:49–end: Bono’s character; why the experience mattered so much; wrap-up

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Episode Tone

Warm, genuine, and infused with the show’s trademark humor and honest self-deprecation. The hosts’ banter and storytelling keep the episode relatable and entertaining—balancing starry-eyed fandom with hilarious real-life awkwardness.

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Summary Verdict:
This episode is a heartwarming, highly entertaining tale of persistence, serendipity, and the magic of meeting your heroes—proof that sometimes, with the right mix of planning, courage, and luck, dreams (and excellent photo ops) can come true.

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Transcript

[Burt Weiss]

The Bird show. Just to recap, in case you weren't listening for the last week, that U2 and Bono just are kind of like, I don't know, the band of mine and my wife's relationship. Mm. I mean, essentially, we fell in love to U2 songs, and our wedding song was a U2 song. Our son was born at Northside while a CD of U2 played in the background. So I would say we're both fans. I would say my wife is a much bigger fan than I am. She has. When she reads about Bono and his wife and his life and their family, she just feels like he, for whatever reason, speaks to her. Right.

[Co-host 1]

Was she a fan before you, or did you introduce her to the band?

[Burt Weiss]

No.

[Co-host 1]

Band of consequence.

[Burt Weiss]

No, she was a fan before I came. She. She introduced me to U2. So she was there way before I was. So this weekend, with you two being in town on Friday and Saturday night, I kind of made it, like a personal mission to go out and somehow, some way, get my wife Stacy in front of Bono. And I put up a $500 reward for anybody that gave me tips and leads that would lead me to Bono. And those leads changed the game big time. For whatever reason. 500. All the emails started coming in, calls started coming in. People really wanted that $500. So going into the weekend, I felt fairly confident that at one point or another, we would be in his presence. I knew what hotel he was staying in. In fact, it got so freaky that we ended up checking into the same hotel and that U2 was in on Friday night and got confirmation that they were there as soon as we walked in the door. So that tip was absolutely legitimate. I knew about a high powered meeting that Bono was having on Saturday afternoon from a couple of different listeners downtown. So if we didn't somehow run into Bono in the hotel or you two in the hotel, then the plan was to send Stacy down because I couldn't go because we had the one life to win thing going on.

[Co-host 2]

Right?

[Burt Weiss]

So she was gonna go down and just kind of hover in front of the entrance of this meeting was. And as Bono came in, she'd just be like, I had no idea you were, oh, here's my camera, here's some ebay items, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. You know, she was just gonna play it off like it was a chance meeting, really. We knew about two private parties that they were having also that we were gonna try to stake out also. And again, not like work our way in, just kind of as they were There we'd be sort of in front of the entrance, walking by and be surprised. And. And I got confirmation on all of those. They all actually happened, and they were all real events. Those weren't just rumors based on nothing. They were all actual. Okay, so it was all lined up. It was all lined up, ready to go. It turns out I didn't need any of them on Friday. On the way down to the concert, I got a call from Phillips arena saying, look, they've been listening all week long and they wanted to try to help me out. Now, Bono and U2, they don't do, like, backstage meet and greets like other bands. They just don't do that kind of thing. But Trey over at Phillips said, look, we've got this hospitality party going on beforehand, and there's a slim chance that the guys in the band will be there before the actual show. So we can try to get you in that. That's as close as I can help you out. So that's on the way down to the arena. So obviously, I hit the gas as fast as I can because we were running a little late. There wasn't a lot of time before the show. So I finally get down to Phillips arena, and there's about, I'd say, 10 minutes before the show even starts when they escort me into this hospitality area 10 minutes before the show, and I walk down in there and I look around, There doesn't seem to be anything going on, right? And Stacey and I are so nervous at just the prospect of actually meeting Bono. I mean, you heard us last week practicing lines with you guys and figuring out what that first line was gonna be just to break the ice that we had ourselves so worked up that this was really gonna happen. We were so nervous. We were this close to both throwing up, right? So we walk on over to the bar to get a drink, and somebody from the other radio station here, 99X, says, so, you guys, you're gonna make this happen, huh? And I said, well, you know, I mean, if we're in the same room with them. And she looks at me really, really weird, and she says, what do you mean? If you're in the same room as him, turn around. So I turn around, and sure enough, there's Bono. No. Yeah. I didn't even see him. Stacey and I walked right by him.

[Co-host 2]

Oh, my God.

[Burt Weiss]

What? We were so nervous. We walked right by him. Now, he was surrounded by, like, nine people, but it wasn't like this feeding frenzy that you would think when he walks in the room, everybody Just rushes towards him to get an autograph, right? It was kind of a chilling kind of like very casual half circle around them, right?

[Co-host 2]

Oh, my gosh.

[Burt Weiss]

So we both look at each other and sort of lock up a little bit. Almost freeze. Like.

[Co-host 2]

Like, now what do we do?

[Burt Weiss]

Okay, who's gonna go first? We've practiced for the last two days. All right, So I actually got a little bit more gutsy than Stacy did. She was really nervous. And I said, look, this may be the only opportunity we have this weekend. Let's get aggressive about this, okay? So I grab her by the hand and I pull her over to the half circle. And like I said, there's like nine people around. And he. Bono is talking very intensely, as you would hope Bono would very intensely and very seriously about Africa and the world's problems to a whole bunch of people in his one campaign. And I think from some members of the CDC also, he's turning water into wine.

[Co-host 1]

Just doing very.

[Co-host 3]

I was just gonna say he was talking about how it took him six days to make the world.

[Co-host 1]

He was holding the tablets with the.

[Co-host 2]

Commandments on him, baskets, a little bit.

[Burt Weiss]

Of bread, a little bit of fish. So it's kind of getting uncomfort because there are so many people around trying to push him and pull them in different directions, right? And I realized that Sanjay Gupta from CNN is right next to me, also in line. And as again, Bono is talking very intensely, I say, hey to Sanjay. Hey, I'm Bert from all the hits Q100. We've had Jan A couple of times, and he remembered who I was, and we started talking, and his wife was there also. So I cut a deal with them. And I said, if by some chance there's a way that you guys can get a picture with Bono, we'll take one for you, and then we'll juxtapose positions and then you take one with us. And they agree to that. And we're waiting for Bono and waiting for Bono. And sure enough, Sanjay gets a little bit more aggressive, and he goes right on up to Bond. Bono shakes hands, and his wife takes a picture of Bono and Sanjay. So Sanjay again turns the other way, and he's starting to talk to like eight or nine other CDC people. And every second feels like an hour to me. Like, I'm looking at the clock and I'm like, I know he's got to be on stage in like five minutes now, but I don't want to be rude about it and pull him or push him or something like that. So his Security guard comes right up as I'm this close to him.

[Co-host 2]

Oh, no.

[Burt Weiss]

And starts pulling him away and starts screaming out, we gotta go on stage. We gotta go on stage. And Bono turns towards me and Stacy and starts walking away. And I'm like, this is it. I mean, our opportunity to actually meet Bono is slipping away because they gotta be on stage. And I wouldn't let it happen. I would not let him out of that room. So I sort of stand right in front of him and I extend my hand and I say to him, I would never, ever forgive myself. Just like we practiced. I would never, ever forgive myself if I didn't shake your hand. And he stops and he turns and he shakes my hand. And then while I have his hand in mine, I say, can I introduce you to my wife? And he says, you know, sure, or whatever. And Stacy comes up and shakes his hand, and she's trembling. She's trembling. And somehow she gets out. Do you have a second to take a quick picture? And he says, of course. So it's now Bono with his arm around my wife, then me on the other side of Stacey, And I hand my camera. Actually, it's Jeff's camera that we borrowed to Sanjay's wife, Rebecca, who is trying to figure out how to use the camera for the very first time, and snaps a premature picture.

[Co-host 2]

Oh, no.

[Burt Weiss]

Flash goes off. And we all knew that she didn't get the shot. And Bono starts walking away, and Rebecca says, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait. I didn't get the shot. Bono walks back into the picture, puts his arm around Stacy, takes a picture with Stacy and me, and then begins to walk off. And that's when it gets a little weird. And I say something.

[Co-host 3]

He walked right through the wall.

[Co-host 1]

He just levitated out.

[Burt Weiss]

I say to him, thank you for the music that you've provided my family. And he looked at me with a really curious look, like, what the hell does that mean? And before he could get too wrapped up in thought, Stacy says to him, because she's done a lot of reading about his whole family, and she almost saves the whole second or two right there and says, I just want you to know how much I admire your wife, Allie. And he stopped and looked back and said, thanks, that's really, really cool, and then walked away. That was it.

[Co-host 1]

What was your line, though? I want to thank you.

[Burt Weiss]

Yeah, I want to thank you for the music you provided my family or something like that. It just happened so fast, and it was so.

[Co-host 2]

Just trying to get something out of your mouth, like, just say Something.

[Burt Weiss]

The moment.

[Co-host 2]

That is awesome.

[Burt Weiss]

And there's the picture that these guys are seeing for the very first time.

[Co-host 1]

That's funny.

[Burt Weiss]

Bono is a little man. He is 5 foot 8 at best. He photographs much bigger than that. He is a little. Little. Really? Yeah. And I had no idea because you see him on stage, and he's so bigger than life. And I. In our lives, he's, you know, seriously bigger than life. He's a little guy.

[Co-host 2]

Most entertainers, every time you meet somebody who's famous, you end up saying that. I'm surprised. Musician, too, but, yeah, most.

[Co-host 3]

That's an awesome picture. Dude, that is so cool.

[Burt Weiss]

It will be up on the website here in just a little bit. We'll get it all down and above.

[Co-host 2]

Your mantle for the rest of your.

[Burt Weiss]

Life, without a doubt.

[Co-host 2]

Sorry, Hayden, out of the way.

[Co-host 3]

Wouldn't it be funny if, like. It wouldn't be funny if Stacy gets a bunch of other pictures made up and, like, cuts Bird out of it.

[Burt Weiss]

That's fine. Whatever she wants. So. Right.

[Co-host 2]

So great.

[Burt Weiss]

The night and day could have been over there. We got to meet him. It was all over. Right. Well, we get back to the hotel, and we're pretty exhausted, and we go to check in, and as luck would have it, they check us into a room. I have to try to explain this without giving away the hotel. We knew what floor you two were staying on.

[Co-host 1]

They rented the whole floor.

[Burt Weiss]

They rented the whole floor. And there was really. I guess you probably could have. I was really, really surprised by the lack of security around Bono. And he says that in his books and stuff, like, he doesn't like to travel with more than one security around him. And that is accurate. That is accurate. So anyway, we know he's on the 20, let's say the 22nd floor or whatever. Right. In this particular hotel, like, the VIP concierge lounge is two stories tall. So let's call it the 25th and 26th floors. Take up this VIP lounge from the 26th floor. You can look in from a window into what's going on in that VIP lounge. And as luck would have it, they check us into the hotel room right next to that window on the VIP floor. So anything that's going on in that VIP lounge, we can see. Go on. So after the concert, we go back and we're. We're done. Ready to make a night of it. We're all done. We're excited. We're pretty buzzed. My wife actually is really drunk. I mean, she got so excited by the whole experience. So drunk like, she orders room service and gets four items and has one bite and then passes out kind of thing.

[Co-host 1]

You wake up the next morning and you wonder why there's a full pizza in a B.O. on your babe.

[Burt Weiss]

And all, like, the stereotypical stuff too. I'm gonna get a pizza. She had, like, a cheesecake, chicken wings and didn't eat any of it.

[Co-host 3]

Oh, and hot chocolate.

[Co-host 1]

That sounds good right now. Oh, yeah, and yogurt. I want yogurt. Frozen yogurt. And do they have sweet and sour chicken?

[Burt Weiss]

This is two in the morning, you know. So they wheel the food in. Stacy literally has one bite, passes out, right? Well, I don't want the smell of the food inside the room. So I wheel the room service back out, and I hear some stuff going on in that VIP lounge. Like, all of a sudden, there's a party going on in there, right? So I wheel the room service out, and I look down into the VIP lounge. There's Bono. There's the Edge. And there's about 15 people of his closest friends all just partying and hanging out and talking and stuff. So I go back into the room, and I wake Stacy up. I'm done with the night at that point. Now it gets a little weird because Stacy wants to try to get into the party. Oh. Oh, no. So we worked.

[Co-host 2]

She's already passed out, and she's passed.

[Burt Weiss]

Out, and she's pretty drunk. So we try to walk into the party. They have a list of about nine names, and Burt Weiss from Q100 radio is not on there. They turn us away. So rather than go, I go to bed at this point. And again, my wife is drunk inside of that window. She perches herself up and is staring inside the window as the party is going on, breathing on the glass, pretty much. Oh, God, pretty much. And Again, this is 2 in the morning. She'd been passed out for a while. So now she's got, like, pale drunk face with bags under the eyes, hair not done. And one of the security guys, not for the hotel, but for Bono, comes up and says, we're gonna have to ask you to leave. And Stacy says, hotel guests just can't stay up here. And he says he was as nice as it gets. He says, we can't tell you to leave, but I just wanna let you know, like, these guys have had 15,000 eyes staring at them for the last two hours. So they'd really like alone time with their family. And he had this thick Irish accent, and Stacy said, okay. And that was it. So he kind of like, gently shooed her off and that was the end of the whole Bono Edge and drunk experience for the whole weekend.

[Co-host 2]

That's awesome, though. Congratulations.

[Burt Weiss]

But it did actually happen. It did actually happen.

[Co-host 2]

Thank you, Trey.

[Burt Weiss]

Thank you, Trey. Big time. Thank you to Philips arena for making that happen. Hey, son.

[Co-host 3]

God, I can't even get Hawks tickets.

[Burt Weiss]

Yes, you can. Hey, Summer. What's going on?

[Co-host 2]

Hey.

[Guest or Producer]

I was, like, totally choked up when you were telling that.

[Burt Weiss]

I don't know why.

[Guest or Producer]

I guess I'm happy because it got a little deep toward the end of the week, like how you feel about Bono and, you know, wanting to meet him and stuff like that. That last little part about Stacy kind of took me away from my choked up mode.

[Burt Weiss]

But that's it.

[Guest or Producer]

I'm happy you guys met it.

[Burt Weiss]

It really meant way more to her than it did me. In fact, I took a picture right after we met him and she's balling like a baby, so we've got that picture also. It was just. It was. It couldn't have been any better, to be honest with you. When are you going to put him up? Right after the show. Like, it's on cd. I didn't want to give it to Melissa early to put up because I didn't want her to know what happened. Right. I'll give her the cd and I guess right after the show, we'll put it up online.

[Guest or Producer]

Awesome.

[Burt Weiss]

Okay, thanks. All right. Bye. Bye. So it happened.

[Co-host 2]

That's great.

[Burt Weiss]

Awesome. Awesome. And he. The thing that impressed me so much is he is everything that has been written about him. And I kind of understand now also, because he gets out there politically, you know, and he's kind of. I think with people like that, the media really tend to try to want to drag him down and they look for dirt. And I have always wondered why nobody has gotten anything on this guy whatsoever. And they just know how to do business, like traveling with only one security guard. And even the security guard knows how to treat you well. And they're just so polite. And he was just such a nice guy that I understand why he's so likable and people don't want to tear him down. It totally met the expectation. Totally met. Good. There's your story. The Bird show.