About
Coldplay is an enormously popular English rock band composed of members Chris Martin, Johnny Buckland, Guy Berrman, and Will Champion. They are known for their passionate, sweet melodies and swooning lyrics, and their various anthemic hits including “Yellow,” “Clocks,” and “Viva La Vida.”
All of the members of Coldplay were born into musical families, and all of them played instruments before they began elementary school. Coming together at the University College of London, the band played their first gig at a festival for unsigned bands and released two EPs, Safety, and Brothers & Sisters. Neither EP saw much acclaim, but they did lead Coldplay to a deal with Parlophone Records in April 1999.
The debut album Parachutes came out in the summer of 2000, and became an instant hit. The album and its hit single, “Yellow,” were a critical and commercial success both in the United States and United Kingdom. Coldplay’s second album, A Rush of Blood to the Head, was even more universally successful than the first, leading to a world tour and Grammy Awards for “In My Place,” and “Clocks.” For their third album, X&Y, Coldplay was joined by Danton Suppie of Morissey and the Cure, a collaboration which led to chart-topping success around the world and over eight million copies sold in the first year.
After receiving criticism for their earnestness and formulaic sound, Coldplay came back in 2008 with the decidedly fresh Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends, carried partly by the strength of its titular single “Viva La Vida.” For Mylo Xyloto (2011), the band explored the territories of synth-electronic and hip-hop, and again topped charts with “Princess of China,” and Paradise. 2014’s Ghost Stories, influenced by Martin’s breakup with actress Gwyneth Paltrow, was another chart-topping success. The Grammy-nominated album featured platinum singles “Magic,” and “A Sky Full of Stars,” a collaboration with Avicii.
No sooner than they returned from the world tour of Ghost Stories, the band got to work on their seventh album, a collaboration with the likes of Noel Gallagher, Beyonce, and Tove Lo. A Head Full of Dreams (2015) became Coldplay’s seventh straight U.K. number one and went multi-platinum. While on the road for the album, the band released “Something Just Like This,” a collaboration with the Chainsmokers which became yet another smash hit. The Head Full of Dreams tour was also the third highest-grossing concert tour of all time.
Coldplay performs regularly around the world, and are often booked for corporate entertainment events and private parties.
