"We're not touring this album," frontman Chris Martin told BBC News.
"We're taking time over the next year or two, to work out how our tour can not only be sustainable [but] how can it be actively beneficial."
Friday, November 22, 2019
Coldplay to pause touring until concerts are 'environmentally beneficial'
"We're not touring this album," frontman Chris Martin told BBC News.
"We're taking time over the next year or two, to work out how our tour can not only be sustainable [but] how can it be actively beneficial."
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I’m not sure if this is a PR stunt or if they legitimately want to be better stewards of the environment. Also, why do they have to halt touring until concerts are environmentally beneficial? They could stay making them beneficial now. Until bands demand from touring companies sustainable practices such as no single use plastic, these companies are not going to change. I understand the band’s point of view, but the myriad of companies that support the tour are about profit. This could work if that profit became something else more worthwhile. It’s great that they want to use all solar power but how can you make that possible when moving from city to city? You’d have to have solar panels travel with you as well as a generator to provide the power for your rig. That in itself is a daunting task and the amount of trucks alone would negate the power savings since there is not currently a long haul tractor/trailer on the roads that is electric at this time. So yes, this is a great idea, but again, it feels more like a publicity stunt than a legitimate reason. Maybe they are doing this to drive up their youtube business.
A lot of the sustainable practices that Coldplay is demanding in this article are entirely feasible. I think it is a bit counteractive to simply say "I don't wanna tour" till it's sustainable, rather than using their international influence to create change. This just seems like their goal was to get attention .That being said, what they are proposing is a good idea, and an important one. Our entertainment craze has really done harm on the environment, even down to the amount of wood we use one single time and throw away in theatre. And the electricity we use for lights, sound, and media. There should be steps taken in every aspect of entertainment to make sure we don't ruin the environment, especially since so many artists and entertainers are so environmentally conscious in other aspects of their lives. I hope that the industry starts taking steps towrds making theatre, concerts, and filmmaking more sustainable.
It is respectable the band is going to make efforts to make their tour more environmentally friendly. It will definitely be a large project, but I do not think it is entirely impossible. We have technology, it is just expensive. The entertainment industry uses a ton of energy, between lighting and sound, infrastructure, and mainly transportation. To make and move all the equipment and materials has to be using a ton of energy and fossil fuels. I don’t know if there is a feasible way, at this point in time, to achieve a 100% environmentally friendly music tour, but there are definitely big changes and efforts that can be done to drastically improve a band’s environmental footprint. Hopefully the band begins to actually make efforts to make their industry more sustainable, and don’t just wait around until somebody else finds a solution. It will be interesting to see what response Coldplay gets from this decision.
Most people do not often point to touring and performance as having extremely detrimental effects on the environment. In this article, the members of Coldplay recognize the impacts that going on tour has in so many different aspects. They understand that the largest detriment is due to flying all over the globe, but also have goals such as having shows that do not use single-use plastic and use solar power as a way of reaching a tour that is carbon neutral. Having attended several concerts and music festivals (which often occur outside), I am often shocked by the fact that garbage is left everywhere, and sustainable options are not easily available. I also really appreciate that not only do they want to be sustainable, but beneficial to the environment. Coldplay is truly leading by example and setting the bar high for other artists who also tour. By bringing this issue into the public eye, I hope that other artists respond by following in Coldplay’s footsteps.
I appreciate artists doing things for a cause rather than just to become a bigger name. Sometimes it is hard to tell what their intentions are, because you can be gaining more publicity and making your stardom bigger by doing things for a cause. Regardless, more than the artist will benefit, so that's always good. With that being said, I really hope that Coldplay can live up to all of this, and I really hope that it has the impact that they hope it will have. Looking at the pie chart, I think if they are really serious about this, some good ideas may be to use outdoor open areas instead of arenas and stadiums, and keep things very low tech. Sort of like a music festival (coachella, etc...) with very low tech. They will be sacrificing a lot here and the vibe of the concert will be much different from what they and their fans are accustomed to, but if they are serious, that can be a good start. They can also cut out private jets and airplanes and move around solely by ground transportation. They can lessen their equipment and use as little tour buses as possible, and provide buses for concert goerers. Of course they will have to use an airplane when they want to cross the Atlantic ocean, but going by boat is also an option if they are really committed. There are other options like having no merchandise, providing non-plastic drinking containers, paperless tickets, etc... This is all doable, and it would set a good example for many people. Though, it would be a challenge to maintain their standard of concerts while sacrificing so many things that upholds that standard. Otherwise, they will have to change the dynamic of what their concerts are like.
This is a very interesting and unique issue Coldplay brought up as an excuse to not tour their show. Honestly, I saw on Twitter a tweet saying "this is the most Coldplay thing ever" and I couldn't agree more. I think it is a big stance that they won't be touring their new album across the states and even globe. I do feel like there are ways to bypass this though. I wonder is Coldplay will never set foot on another stage since it causes so much environmental harm. Maybe they will fund their own venue that takes steps in ensuring it causes the least amount of hard to the surrounding environment? Coldplay can also keep it very simple with no extra set pieces or giant screens and hold minimal concerts that will just be them, the audience, and a few speakers. They don't need to have everything massive and have whole venues go all the way out to perform at a concert.
-Pablo Anton
Part of them stopping the break will be trying to figure out how to make a positive impact. Not only not breaking the world, but also trying to mend it. Figuring this out takes time, as they now need to research how to achieve everything they do, in a sustainable way. Companies and organizations have more power than they might believe. They have “blackmailing power” like for example, lush cosmetics has vowed to only use ingredients that are ethically sourced, forcing sourcing companies to amend their policies, and rates so they don’t lose their major partner. I imagine Coldplay has the same buying power as lush, with their mind set on sustainability they might be able to force companies and organizations into sustainable practices, by making new deals or threatening with withdrawing from previously made deals. The mere decision of stop touring, can be a power move against the companies they work with.
At first glance, the thought that popped into my head was "this is missing out on a lot of money"then I read the entire article and appreciated the what it is they are committing to. This is a huge commitment to take on and I am glad that there are individuals in the public eye who are using their positions to stand up for the right thing. Going completely carbon neutral is going to be really difficult to accomplish but it can be definitely done. I really appreciate that the band Coldplay is not just talking the talk but walking the talk. These things are easier said than done so it is definitely refreshing to see people doing things about it. This also seems well thought out and not just something that was spontaneously thought of to make them seem like good people. Like the article said, it would be lovely to see what they come up with and if other tours adopt these solutions .
I’m very excited by this initiative by Coldplay to try and be more environmentally conscious. It is interesting that they have been on multiple tours already and have not done this previously, but they probably would have had trouble affording it earlier in their career as a touring group. Concerts have enormous environmental impacts. People that come to watch typically purchase food and drinks which all have packaging that turns to waste. Enormous amounts of power is required in order to power the lighting, sound, and media rigs that are typically massive for these types of shows. This power would typically come from unsustainable sources like coal or other fossil fuel burning plants. Coldplay has the goal of being carbon neutral and this article talks about how they want to use solar power to power some of these things. I think this could be a really great step in the right direction for the future of the touring industry. Yes, it is very expensive to do something like this, but they may have put the pressure on other artists to try and do the same thing with their tours. I am excited to see where the future of this goes.
Wow, carbon neutral concerts. Cold Play really step up the challenge and made a brilliant example for the industry. Following along with the green theater projects during this semester, I finally have a clearer feature of what does environmental friendly truly mean. In my point of view, the only way of a concert being carbon neutral is dedicating the commercial benefits it creates on investing and advocating tree planting. To sum the topic, nothing that people do is environmental friendly, and making the challenge even harder is that our industry is nothing close to necessity of human surviving. A reasonable baseline to start with is through the concert, we should find a way to leverage the resource put into the touring to create more positive impacts on people's daily live outside of the event itself. For example if the concert can bring more attention to greener power resource. Thus justify the petrol used for gear transportation.
I think it's really admirable what ColdPlay is doing with their plan to put their tour on hold. When I first read the headline, I thought that it was implying that the band was being kind of stubborn about it, as if they were saying that they wouldn't tour until the actual people in charge of the productions changed their ways. Instead, it's incredible to see them brainstorming and researching as artists themselves. They're the ones thinking of solutions; these big name people are not only joining the conversation on sustainable entertainment, they are leading it. All of their solutions are attainable goals. The proposal about removing single use plastic? Absolutely doable. Large corporations already serve beverages in the patron's cups that they bring in. And on the matter of security, you can bring reusable cups and bottles onto airplanes, so you should definitely be able to bring it into a venue. On the topic of airplanes, the only variable on the pie chart that the band probably can't control is the emissions caused by audience travel. Increasing their number of shows and locations would take away from audience travel but add to other parts of the pie.
I think this article was really cool and it illustrates something that we, as future professionals must realize: that climate change and the environmental impact of our profession are changing the field we work in entirely. I will venture to guess that this is not the first of this article out there, and it certainly will not be the last. The industry is finally taking responsibility for the waste and energy consumption that live performances create, and it is going to change the way we create, manage, and travel. I think it has been almost unspoken for a long time, because it forces us to, in a way, make our already difficult jobs even harder, but it is a necessity. We need to, as an industry, reevaluate how we approach our global footprint and how we think about our impact on the planet. Live performances are black holes for energy, and most venues rely on fossil fuel-produced power.
Having spent quite some time delving into green production, I think Coldplay’s idea is ambitions, necessary, and possibly impossible. Looking at the pie chart in this article, it appears that audience travel is the most significant part of their impact, but not by much. One idea that has come up in our discussions of audience travel is offering a bonus to audience members who use public transportation; this may or may not be feasible for audiences that are the size drawn by Coldplay. The flights, as they mention, are probably not something they can do away with, and they also cannot get away from the environmental impact. Most likely, the best solution is to buy carbon offsets as the 1975 does. I have little doubt that all of this is going to drive ticket prices up in a time when ticket prices are excessively expensive and unobtainable for many people.
I’m very impressed that Coldplay is canceling their concert tour of their new album because touring is not very environmentally friendly. Climate change is very real and we need to take care of our planet. I’m surprised that they are willing to give up the chance to make soo much money for the sake of the environment. After looking at some data the carbon footprint of a world tour is enormous! Travel alone leaves an impact between the amount of gas used for the band to get to all of the venues and the amount of travel done by bands who probably come from all over the world to see their shows. I’m really glad that Coldplay is using their platform to spread messages about protecting our environment because we need to keep our environmental actions in mind. Coldplay will be doing one concert instead and broadcasting it globally on YouTube for free!
I think it's great that the music industry is working to help save our planet. I didn't realize all these different bands were making these changes. I never thought about how much tours and concerts negatively affect the planet, but it makes sense. I'm not sure if Coldplay is just doing this as a publicity stunt, but if they are, and they do end up actively helping the planet in their next tour, then I guess it's a bit of a win-win. I am curious as to what ideas they will come up with to not only make their concerts carbon neutral, but to go as far as to make them beneficial to the planet. I'm definitely interested in checking in on the story once they've figured it out. I hope this sets a precedent for other artists to work more to preserve our planet.
While it's admirable for Coldplay to attempt reform to save our planet, the likelihood of their tours being environmentally beneficial, or beneficial enough to make a marked difference on the declining health of our planet isn't likely. I applaud them for attempting to go carbon neutral. That is a big step in the right direction for any organization or large scale event. And I hope their persistence and adamant refusal to play until these criteria are met lasts through the entire process. If their resolve holds out, they will be inspirations for others in the music industry and hopefully, set a bar that will be aimed for by all in similar positions. Attempting to go carbon neutral wins my respect as it is a bold and difficult statement to accomplish. Celebrities are often role models for the general public but especially children, it would be beneficial for them to get kids involved so they can see the real positive change occuring before them.
It is cool to see big bands like Coldplay being environmentally aware like this. This kind of thing should definitely be applauded and presented as not the right way to conduct your business, but the only way. This should become the new standard, not the outlier. I like that they are trying to go beyond just being carbon neutral and want to have a positive affect as well. It is important that they take audience travel into account which it looks like they are. David mentioned having a public transportation day for a show as a way to cut back on a theater’s carbon footprint, and I think that idea has a lot of merit. Finding a way to get the people who are coming to your shows invested in making it a green event is a difficult, but very important piece to this puzzle that still needs to be figured out.
I adore Coldplay, and have admired them as musicians for most of my life. So much so, that for my sixteenth birthday, I travelled all the way from Memphis to San Francisco to see them in concert. That particular concert included a feat that they included in every show, the distribution of plastic wristbands that were wired to light up so the crowd was brightly colored and moving. At the time, as a mere 16 year old, I never thought of the impact that that short weekend might have had on the environment. Coldplay has played hundreds of shows in massive arenas, with immense production value that does in fact leave such a carbon footprint. I think it’s incredible of them (knowing their large audience) for taking such public charge of our responsibility for protecting our environment. I had NO idea that concerts had such a massive impact—for the article to say that a U2 concert had the same footprint as a return flight to mars?! That is RIDICULOUS! I think Coldplay is doing the right thing with their decision, and that they are being so conscious about every little detail that goes into the concert experience (which isn’t just the performance, as the article so brilliantly displays in a visual chart). I hope so very much that other artists take notice of this decision and join in the fight against climate change.
Concerts will literally never be ‘Environmentally Beneficial’. There will always be some element of waste involved, whether that is in emissions created by audience travel, trash from concessions, “swag”, performer and musician travel, etc.. Maybe they will find a way to overcome this, but I would not be floored if Chris Martin gives this up when the next album rolls around and they haven’t made progress towards being able to be ‘beneficial’ to the environment. Pessimistic views aside, it does excite me that a group as big as Coldplay is actively reflecting on the impacts their group is having on the environment, and really looking at ways to better themselves. I hope other groups take on this initiative, even if it is not to this extreme of a degree, I think that literally any step matters, and this kind of awareness is progress. I am excited to see what solutions they come up with, and I hope they share those on a grand scale.
Wow! Talk about a group of people recognizing their privilege and using it. Like many of the other people who have commented on this article, I am impressed by what Coldplay is doing. I am sure there are several upset fans who wish that Coldplay was still touring but it is great to see that Coldplay is using its power to try to get environmentally better. This being said, from all the different looks I’ve done into greening theatre, this is quite complicated. The greenest answer might be that they stop touring and instead of video cast themselves onto people’s laptops. I was in a presentation on greening scenery earlier this week and learned about budgeting for a carbon offset. Maybe this is a way that the tour would get around being carbon neutral or even taking the next two years to plant trees. I am super not surprised to see that the audience travels and venues take up the most energy. Maybe doing a virtual tour could be the answer or like the Coldplay, member said using solar panels. I hope this tour achieves its extremely difficult goal of having a carbon neutral footprint.
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