After more than 25 years recording for Island Records in the United Kingdom, U2 has swapped label home with sister Universal Music Group imprint Mercury.
It is understood that the Irish quartet made the move in an effort to continue working closely with Mercury U.K. president Jason Iley and his team. London-based Iley shifted from Island, where he was GM, on June 1, 2005.
In the United Kingdom, the band’s upcoming hits compilation “U218 Singles” will be issued on the Mercury label in the run up to Christmas. Interscope will continue to handle their releases in the United States.
“We foster strong relationships at Universal Music,” a Universal Music spokeswoman tells Billboard.biz. “We have the best artists and the best executives and we’re proud of how closely they work together.”