Chris Martin

This article is about the Coldplay musician. For other uses, see Chris Martin (disambiguation).
Chris Martin

Chris Martin sitting at his piano at a 2005 concert
Born Christopher Anthony John Martin
(1977-03-02) 2 March 1977
Exeter, Devon, England
Occupation
Spouse(s) Gwyneth Paltrow (m. 2003; div. 2015)

Musical career

Genres
Instruments
Years active 1995–present
Labels
Associated acts
Website www.coldplay.com

Christopher Anthony John "Chris" Martin (born 2 March 1977)[1] is an English musician, singer, and songwriter known as the lead vocalist and co-founder of the band Coldplay.

Early life and education

Christopher Anthony John Martin was born in Whitestone, Devon, England, and is the eldest of five children. His father, Anthony Martin, is a retired accountant, and his mother, Alison Martin, is a music teacher. His family's business was Martins of Exeter until sold by his father in 1999.[2][3] William Willett, the man who campaigned for and made daylight saving time a recognized practice, was Martin's great-great-grandfather.[4]

Martin was educated at the pre-preparatory Hylton School and the preparatory Exeter Cathedral School where he found his passion for music.[5] After Exeter Cathedral School, Martin boarded at Sherborne School in Dorset, where he met future Coldplay manager Phil Harvey.[6]

Martin continued his studies at University College London (UCL), staying at Ramsay Hall, where he read Ancient World Studies and graduated with first-class honours in Greek and Latin.[3] At UCL, he met future Coldplay bandmates Jonny Buckland, Will Champion and Guy Berryman.[7]

Recording career

Coldplay

Main article: Coldplay

While studying at University College London, Martin met Jonny Buckland with whom he decided to form a band - Martin on lead vocals and Buckland as lead guitarist. They were joined by Guy Berryman as their bass player and Will Champion, who learned how to play drums in order to serve as the drummer for the band. In 1996, they formed the rock band Coldplay, originally known as Pectoralz, later changed to Starfish temporarily until finally they were offered the name Coldplay by another band who did not want the name anymore.

Since the release of their first album Parachutes in 2000 , the band has had internationally recognized fame and success. To date, they have released seven studio albums in total including A Rush of Blood to the Head, X&Y, Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends, Mylo Xyloto, Ghost Stories, and A Head Full Of Dreams. They also released several EP's at the beginning of their creation including Safety (EP) and The Blue Room (EP).[8]

Solo work

Martin at Music Midtown (Piedmont Park) in Atlanta, GA on 24 September 2011

As a solo artist, Martin has written songs for a variety of acts including Embrace ("Gravity") and Jamelia ("See It in a Boy's Eyes", co-written with Coldplay producer Rik Simpson). Martin has also collaborated with Ron Sexsmith, Faultline when he sang on two haunting Faultline tracks: 'Where is My Boy?' and 'Your Love Means Everything Part2.', The Streets, and Ian McCulloch. He also sang a part of the vocals for the Band Aid 20 single, "Do They Know It's Christmas?" at the end of 2004. In 2005, Martin collaborated with Nelly Furtado on the track "All Good Things (Come to an End)", for her 2006 album, Loose. The two were once rumoured to be a couple, after they both performed at Glastonbury in 2002. Furtado joked about the situation, saying that "Yeah, he's my boyfriend – he just doesn't know it yet".[9]

Martin's fascination with hip hop was shown in mid-2006 when he collaborated with rapper Jay-Z for the rapper's comeback album Kingdom Come after the two met earlier in the year. Martin put some chords together for a song known as "Beach Chair" and sent them to Jay-Z who enlisted the help of hip hop producer Dr. Dre to mix it. Coldplay producer Rik Simpson conceived and performed the drum beats. The song was performed on 27 September 2006 by the two during Jay-Z's European tour at Royal Albert Hall. In 2007, Martin appeared on a track titled "Part of the Plan" for Swizz Beatz' debut solo album One Man Band Man. Martin has also worked on a solo collaboration with Kanye West, with whom he shared an impromptu jam session during a 2006 concert at Abbey Road Studios.[10] He performed the chorus of "Homecoming", from Kanye West's album Graduation.

In 2015, Martin collaborated with producer and DJ Avicii to work on two new tracks for his upcoming album, Stories. Their first collaboration is officially named "Heaven". Martin wrote the lyrics, Avicii did the production and Simon Aldred of Cherry Ghost was the vocalist. They have planned a second collaboration.[11]

Influences

Martin's and Coldplay's main influence is the British rock band Travis, with Martin crediting the band for the creation of his own group.[12] U2 has been another important influence on Martin both musically and politically,[13] on whom he wrote for Rolling Stone magazine's "100 Greatest Artists of All Time",[14] in the section on U2, saying: "I don't buy weekend tickets to Ireland and hang out in front of their gates, but U2 are the only band whose entire catalogue I know by heart. The first song on The Unforgettable Fire, "A Sort of Homecoming", I know backward and forward – it's so rousing, brilliant, and beautiful. It's one of the first songs I played to my unborn baby." Martin also comments on Bono's effect on his own charity and political involvement he is even known to joke with friends referring to himself as "Crono".[13]

Martin and Coldplay were greatly influenced by Radiohead. Speaking to Rolling Stone magazine, Martin had this to say about the English rock band: "Sometimes I feel like they cleared a path with a machete, and we came afterward and put up a strip mall... I would still give my left ball to write anything as good as OK Computer."[15]

Martin is very vocal about his love for Norwegian new wave/Synthpop band a-ha. In 2005 he stated the following in an interview: "I found myself in Amsterdam the other day and I put a-ha's first record on. I just remembered how much I loved it. It's incredible songwriting. Everyone asks what inspired us, what we've been trying to steal from and what we listened to as we were growing up – the first band I ever loved was a-ha."[16] Martin has also performed live together with Magne Furuholmen of a-ha, introducing him as "the best keyboard player in the world".[17] In November 2011, he stated that "back when we didn't have any hits of our own we used to play a-ha songs."[18]

He is known to be a fan of Oasis and Muse,[19] Irish pop group Westlife,[20] British pop groups Girls Aloud[21][22] and Take That,[23] and Canadian indie rock band Arcade Fire. In 2014, Martin inducted Peter Gabriel into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for his solo career, and performed live with the former Genesis frontman.[24]

Coldplay performed R.E.M.'s "Nightswimming" with Michael Stipe during their Austin City Limits performance in 2005, as a part of the Twisted Logic Tour. Martin went on to call "Nightswimming" "the greatest song ever written".[25] He has called Richard Ashcroft, formerly of The Verve, "the best singer in the world".[26]

Other endeavours

Martin and Coldplay guitarist Jonny Buckland made cameo appearances in the film Shaun of the Dead as supporters of the fictional charity ZombAid,[27] with Martin having a second cameo in the film as a Zombie.[27] In 2006 Martin had a cameo role in the second series, episode four, of the Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant created comedy Extras. He also appears singing in the closing credits of the 2009 Sacha Baron Cohen film Brüno; along with Bono, Sting, Slash, Snoop Dogg, and Elton John.[28]

On 25 March 2014, just moments after his "conscious uncoupling" separation from wife Gwyneth Paltrow was announced, it was revealed that Martin would join The Voice US as a guest special advisor beginning the following week.[29] In March 2015 Martin attended the televised launch of music streaming service Tidal via a video link, and revealed himself, along with other notable artists, as a shareholder in the company.[30] In June 2015, Martin performed "Til Kingdom Come" at the funeral mass of Beau Biden, son of United States Vice President Joe Biden, after learning that Biden was a fan of his.[31]

Politics

Martin has been particularly outspoken on issues of fair trade and has campaigned for Oxfam's Make Trade Fair campaign. He travelled to Ghana and Haiti to meet farmers and view the effects of unfair trade practices.[32] When performing he usually has variations of "Make Trade Fair", "MTF" or an equal sign written on the back of his left hand and the letters "MTF" can be seen emblazoned on his piano.[33] He was a vocal critic of US President George W. Bush and the war in Iraq. During the Teenage Cancer Trust show at London's Royal Albert Hall on 24 March 2003, he encouraged the sell-out crowd to "sing against war".[34] He was a strong supporter of Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry, most notably during his acceptance speech for the 2004 Grammy Awards Record of the Year, accepting for "Clocks". He supported Obama for President in 2008, giving a shout-out at the end of a performance of "Yellow" on the 25 October 2008 episode of Saturday Night Live.[35]

Martin playing "Trouble" on his piano during a concert in Brazil, February 2007

On 1 April 2006 The Guardian reported that Martin was backing the British Conservative Party leader David Cameron, and had written a new theme song for the party titled "Talk to David".[36][37] This was later revealed to be an April Fool's joke. While touring Australia in March 2009, Martin and the rest of Coldplay were the opening act at the Sound Relief benefit concert at the Sydney Cricket Ground in Sydney, for the victims of bushfires and floods in Victoria and Queensland.[38] Martin appeared in a video for the "Robin Hood Tax" campaign, which proposes a tax on stock trades in the United States.[39] This tax is aimed at levelling the field between the so-called "1% and 99%".

Philanthropy

On 12 December 2012, Martin performed as a part of the "12 12 12 Concert" which was held as a fundraiser for Hurricane Sandy relief. He performed "Viva La Vida", the R.E.M. song "Losing My Religion" with the former R.E.M. singer Michael Stipe, and "Us Against the World". Other performers in the show included Bruce Springsteen, Roger Waters, Bon Jovi, Eric Clapton, The Rolling Stones, Alicia Keys, The Who, Kanye West, Billy Joel, and Paul McCartney.[40] On 15 November 2014, Martin joined the charity group Band Aid 30, performing alongside British and Irish pop acts on the latest version of the track "Do They Know It's Christmas?" at Sarm West Studios in Notting Hill, London, to raise money for the 2014 Ebola crisis in Western Africa—this was the second time Martin has contributed to a Band Aid recording having performed in the 2004 version.[41]

Martin became the creative director of the newly established Global Citizen Festival in 2015, a role he will fulfill for a period of 15 years.[42] The festival was created in 2015 to mark the establishment of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), a "to-do list" of 17 tasks to end extreme global poverty by the year 2030; with Martin consulting Band Aid founder Bob Geldof on the role.[42] The 2015 festival, was held on Central Park's Great Lawn in New York on 26 September, and featured performances by Martin's band Coldplay, Beyoncé, Pearl Jam and Ed Sheeran, and was broadcast on NBC in the US on 27 September, and the BBC in the UK on 28 September.[43] It was reported that Martin became the Innocence Project's Artists’ Committee as an Innocence Ambassador on 5 February 2016.[44]

Personal life

Martin forces himself to drink vodka with cranberry juice when he behaves "like an idiot".[45][46] PETA named him the World's Sexiest Vegetarian in 2005,[47] as he had been a vegan for a while; however, he started eating meat again after his split with Paltrow.[48]

Relationships

Martin met American actress Gwyneth Paltrow at a Coldplay concert in 2002 during the tour for the release of their second album, A Rush of Blood to the Head. Tabloid newspapers had already started rumouring a relationship between the two, before they had even met. Paltrow said, "It’s funny because people had started writing that we were going out and we had never even met". She states that the rumours began due to an earlier concert; "He was in Los Angeles doing a concert and an actress that he had a crush on was supposed to come to the concert [...] When she didn’t show up, he was so annoyed that he said, 'Oh, this is for my girlfriend Gwyneth Paltrow'." [49] During the later concert, Martin was told by an assistant that Paltrow was at the event - he invited her backstage, and the relationship grew from there. Martin was there for Paltrow while she was dealing with her father's death, and wrote the song "Fix You" about the turmoil surrounding his death and the effects on her.

The couple announced Paltrow's pregnancy and were married on 5 December 2003,[50] in a quiet ceremony in the absence of their friends and family. Their daughter Apple Blythe Alison Martin, was born in May 2004 in London.[51] Martin and the band released a song "I am your baby's daddy" under the name "The Nappies" in anticipation of the birth of Apple. The band's song "Speed of Sound" was also inspired by Martin's experience and awe at becoming a father. Their second child, Moses Bruce Anthony Martin, was born in April 2006 in New York City.[52] Moses's name was inspired by a song, "Moses", that Martin wrote for Paltrow. Simon Pegg and Martin's bandmate Jonny Buckland are Apple's godfathers, and in exchange Martin is the godfather to Pegg's daughter.[53][54] Martin and Paltrow announced their separation in March 2014, after ten years of marriage.[55] Paltrow filed for divorce in April 2015.[56]

Religion

In a 2005 Rolling Stone magazine interview, Martin said of his religious views: "I definitely believe in God. How can you look at anything and not be overwhelmed by the miraculousness of it?"[57] In the same interview he spoke of going through a period of spiritual confusion, stating "I went through a weird patch, starting when I was about sixteen to twenty-two, of getting God, religion, superstition, judgement all confused".[57] In a 2008 interview he said, "I'm always trying to work out what 'He' or 'She' is. I don't know if it's Allah or Jesus or Mohammed or Zeus. But I'd go for Zeus."[58] Following the interview, he released a text message declaring himself an "all-theist", a word of his invention meaning that he believes in "everything".[58]

Filmography

Television

Year Title Role Notes
2006 Extras Himself "Chris Martin" (Season 2: Episode 4)
2010 The Simpsons Himself "Million Dollar Maybe" (Season 21: Episode 11)
2014 Saturday Night Live Himself Saturday Night Live (Season 39: Episode 764)

Films

Year Title Role Notes
2004 Shaun of the Dead Himself Cameo appearance
With Jonny Buckland
2009 Brüno Himself Cameo appearance

Discography

Solo

Year Song(s) Artist Album Role
2002 "Where Is My Boy?"
"Your Love Means Everything, Pt. 2"		 Faultline Your Love Means Everything Featured vocals
"Gold in Them Hills" Ron Sexsmith Cobblestone Runway Featured vocals
2003 "Sliding", "Arthur" Ian McCulloch Slideling Piano, backing vocals
"See It in a Boy's Eyes" Jamelia Thank You Co-writer, backing vocals
2004 "Everybody's Happy Nowadays" Ash Orpheus Backing vocals
"Gravity" Embrace Out of Nothing Writer
"Do They Know It's Christmas?" Band Aid 20 – Featured vocals
2006 "All Good Things (Come to an End)" Nelly Furtado Loose Co-writer, backing vocals
"In the Sun" Michael Stipe In the Sun Backing vocals
"Beach Chair" Jay-Z Kingdom Come Producer, featured vocals
2007 "Homecoming" Kanye West Graduation Co-writer, featured vocals, piano
2009 "Lukas", "Fun", "Want" Natalie Imbruglia Come to Life Co-writer
"Dove of Peace" Brüno Brüno Featured vocals
2010 "Halo" Beyoncé Knowles Hope for Haiti Now Featured vocals, piano
"Most Kingz" Jay-Z – Featured vocals
"Me and Tennessee" Gwyneth Paltrow and Tim McGraw Country Strong Writer
2012 "I Don't Want You To Die" The Flaming Lips The Flaming Lips and Heady Fwends Featured vocals
2014 "Do They Know It's Christmas?" Band Aid 30 – Featured vocals
2015 "True Believer"[59] Avicii Stories Co-writer, guest vocalist
"Every Day's Like Christmas"[60] Kylie Minogue Kylie Christmas Writer, backing vocals
TBA "Heaven" Avicii Stories (part two) Co-writer

With Coldplay

Main article: Coldplay discography

References

  1. ↑ "Monitor". Entertainment Weekly (1249). 8 Mar 2013. p. 20.
  2. ↑ "Chris Martin: The stereo MC". London, UK: Independent. 23 February 2003. Retrieved 23 February 2003.
  3. 1 2 Staff (7 December 2003). "The Observer Profile: Jonny Buckland and Chris Martin". London: The Observer. Retrieved 4 November 2008.
  4. ↑ Jonathan Dekel. "Daylight Saving Time’s Coldplay connection", Canada.com; accessed 21 June 2015.
  5. ↑ "X & Y = Zzzzzzzz". London, UK: The Daily Telegraph. 11 June 2005. Retrieved 22 March 2009.
  6. ↑ "The State of Coldplay". Q. August 2002.
  7. ↑ "Coldplay's university challenge". BBC News. 22 February 2001. Retrieved 21 February 2001.
  8. ↑ "CAS – Central Authentication Service". www.oxfordmusiconline.com.ezproxy2.library.arizona.edu. Retrieved 2015-10-05.
  9. ↑ "Compilation Brings Nelly Furtado and Chris Martin Together Forever". Chart. 5 September 2001. Retrieved 8 October 2009.
  10. ↑ NME staff author (2006). "Chris Martin to release solo collaboration" NME magazine. Retrieved 26 April 2006.
  11. ↑ https://soundcloud.com/officalmemesounds/avicii-ft-simon-aldred-heaven-levels-podcast-37-rip
  12. ↑ "Chris Martin | Martin: 'Travis Invented Coldplay'". Contactmusic. 20 January 2007. Retrieved 14 January 2012.
  13. 1 2 "The Immortals: The First Fifty". Rolling Stone Issue 946. Rolling Stone. Retrieved 21 December 2006.
  14. ↑ "100 Greatest Artists of All Time". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 22 March 2009.
  15. ↑ "Chris Martin | The Coldplay to Radiohead Connection: A Video Investigation'". Rolling Stone. 17 June 2008. Retrieved 25 April 2014.
  16. ↑ "Martin: 'I'm A Big Fan Of A-Ha'".
  17. ↑ "Coldplay – Hunting High And Low (Chris Martin and Mags)". youtube.com. Retrieved 20 September 2008.
  18. ↑ "Vi kjente at noen av de nye låtene virkelig fant sin liveform – kultur". Dagbladet.no. 24 November 2011. Retrieved 2 January 2012.
  19. ↑ "Internet Archive Wayback Machine" (PDF). Web.archive.org. 8 April 2008. Archived from the original (PDF) on 8 April 2008. Retrieved 2 January 2012.
  20. ↑ "Chris Martin: I dream about Westlife". Now. 30 May 2008. Retrieved 22 October 2009.
  21. ↑ Sylvia Patterson (5 October 2008). "Girls uninterrupted". The Observer (London, UK: Guardian Media Group). Retrieved 6 October 2008.
  22. ↑ "Chris Martin : you can't just fancy one member of Girls Aloud, its all or nothing". Celebrities News. fametastic. 7 October 2008. Retrieved 12 April 2008.
  23. ↑ "Chris Martin reveals Coldplays secret love of Take That". Celebrities News. fametastic. 17 November 2008. Retrieved 12 April 2008.
  24. ↑ "Coldplay's Chris Martin performs with Peter Gabriel at Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame ceremony". NME. 11 April 2014. Retrieved 11 April 2014.
  25. ↑ "Coldplay On Austin City Limits On Jambase". Jambase.com. Retrieved 14 January 2012.
  26. ↑ "Richard Ashcroft 'Married' To Chris Martin". Gigwise. 19 March 2006. Retrieved 3 October 2013.
  27. 1 2 "Shaun of the Dead (2004) – Trivia", IMDb, 2008, webpage: IMDb-5748: notes role as zombie, and singer in Ash music.
  28. ↑ Ben Child (1 April 2009). "Bono and Chris Martin record spoof single for Sacha Baron Cohen film". The Guardian (London, UK). Retrieved 9 July 2009.
  29. ↑ Walker, Danny (26 March 2014). "Chris Martin confirms The Voice appearance and Gwyneth Paltrow guests in Glee moments after 'consciously uncoupled' announcement". Mirror. Retrieved 26 March 2014.
  30. ↑ "Six awkward moments at Jay Z's Tidal relaunch". BBC. 31 March 2015. Retrieved 1 April 2015.
  31. ↑ Chris Martin performs at Beau Biden funeral, rollingstone.com; accessed 21 June 2015.
  32. ↑ "Warmplay". Oxfam.org. Retrieved 4 November 2008.
  33. ↑ Gundersen, Edna (3 June 2005). "Catch Coldplay". USAToday.com. Retrieved 12 October 2011.
  34. ↑ "Liam Gallagher slams Chris Martin's anti-war stance". NME. Retrieved 27 July 2015
  35. ↑ "Coldplay Gives Shout Out To Obama On SNL". Current.com. 26 October 2008. Retrieved 25 November 2010.
  36. ↑ Olaf Priol (2006). "Their wives met at yoga. Now Chris Martin plans to rock the vote for Cameron's Tories", guardian.co.uk; retrieved 25 April 2006.
  37. ↑ Guardian staff (2006). "Talk to David" The Guardian; retrieved 26 April 2006.
  38. ↑ Mitchell, Geraldine (24 February 2009). "Coldplay, Kings of Leon to headline bushfire relief concerts". Herald Sun (The Herald and Weekly Times Ltd). Archived from the original on 27 February 2009. Retrieved 8 September 2015.
  39. ↑ "Introducing the Robin Hood Tax". youtube.com. Retrieved 26 July 2012.
  40. ↑ "12 Unforgettable Photos from the Epic 12-12-12 Sandy Benefit Concert", entertainment.time.com; retrieved 15 December 2012.
  41. ↑ Singh, Anita (10 November 2014). "Band Aid 30: One Direction among celebrity line-up". Telegraph (London). Retrieved 11 February 2015.
  42. 1 2 "Chris Martin Talks New 15-Year Gig as Curator of Global Citizen Festival". Billboard. 20 September 2015.
  43. ↑ Hampp, Andrew (July 9, 2015). "Beyoncé, Coldplay, Pearl Jam to Headline New York's 2015 Global Citizen Festival". Billboard. Retrieved August 5, 2015.
  44. ↑ "Innocence Project, Coldplay Team Up in Fight Against Wrongful Convictions - See more at: http://www.innocenceproject.org/news-events-exonerations/innocence-project-coldplay-team-up-in-fight-against-wrongful-convictions#sthash.h0JxNdsf.dpuf". Retrieved 6 February 2016. External link in |title= (help)
  45. ↑ "Chris Martin: The stereo MC". The Independent (London, UK). 23 February 2003. Retrieved 7 May 2009.deadlink
  46. ↑ "Chris Martin Drinks Vodka to Remind Himself 'Not to be Such an Idiot'". Zimbio. Retrieved 30 March 2013.
  47. ↑ "Chris Martin Named World's Sexiest Vegetarian," Agence France-Presse, 23 July 2005.
  48. ↑ Chris Martin no longer a vegetarian post split with Paltrow, usmagazine.com; accessed 21 June 2015.
  49. ↑ "Gwyneth Paltrow and Chris Martin's love story: How the small town UK boy landed a Hollywood film star". Mirror. Retrieved 26 March 2014.
  50. ↑ Hiatt, Brian (10 December 2003). "Gwyneth Paltrow marries Chris Martin". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 24 March 2009.
  51. ↑ Silverman, Stephen M. (14 May 2004). "It's a Girl for Gwyneth Paltrow & Hubby". People. Retrieved 4 November 2008.
  52. ↑ Robertson, Jessica (10 April 2006). "Coldplay's Chris Martin Has a Boy". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 24 March 2009.
  53. ↑ "Martin+Paltrow Name Pegg As Godfather". Contactmusic.com. 9 September 2007. Retrieved 17 March 2009.
  54. ↑ "Simon Pegg named Apple Martin's godfather", Celebrity Baby, 2007, webpage (has 10 ads): CB.
  55. ↑ Paltrow, Gwyneth (25 March 2014). "Conscious Uncoupling". Goop.com. Retrieved 25 March 2014.
  56. ↑ "Gwyneth Paltrow files for divorce from chris martin". The Hollywood Reporter. April 21, 2015.
  57. 1 2 Austin Scaggs (11 August 2005). "Coldplay's Quiet Storm". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 12 April 2009.
  58. 1 2 "What is Chris Martin's problem?". www.independent.ie. 22 June 2008. Retrieved 31 January 2011.
  59. ↑ http://www.newsic.it/news/body_news.php?id=32496
  60. ↑ Minogue, Kylie (13 November 2015). Kylie Christmas (Liner notes). Kylie Minogue. Worldwide: Parlophone. Warner Music Group.

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