Chris Martin knows how to appeal to the youngs, and it involves thanking them for attending a concert despite “all the rigamarole it takes to come to a big show like this.†Gen Z loves rigamarole (don’t even get them started on foofaraw). During Saturday’s Global Citizen Live concert in New York, Coldplay brought out some guests to collab with them on their most recognizable hits. “Whoever’s furthest in the back, we send this to you,†Martin said before launching into “Fix You,†because the lyric “when you try your best but you don’t succeed†applies most of all to audience members at the absolute butt end of a massive Central Park concert. After the first chorus, Billie Eilish emerged to sing the second verse with the help of her brother, Finneas, and the crowd lost their minds. It’s a performance worth watching just to see Eilish, Finneas, and Martin try to really bop and dance to the instrumental break of one of the softest rock songs of all time. It rules.
Even more of a spectacle was Coldplay’s performance of “Yellow,†because halfway through the number, it turned into a Shawn Mendes and Camila Cabello joint. They were giving sensitive-goth bf and raver gf. (And Martin was giving school-dance chaperone.)