Last week, Coldplay teased their upcoming UK tour in a rather low-key way. A vintage flyer from one of their first gigs in 1998 was discreetly displayed at Camden music venue The Dublin Castle in London and contained news of a series of shows the band were set to announce for August 2025. But it had a big statement that they would could throw a lifeline to the grassroots music scene: scrawled in pen across the bottom of the poster, it announced that 10% of proceeds would go to “small venues and upcoming acts.”
When the band officially announced next year's run of shows in London and Hull, the scale of the message became clear. They confirmed that 10% of all proceeds from their eight stadium shows next summer will go to the stage, and that concert promoters (SJM Concerts, Metropolis Music and Live Nation), the band's booking agent (WME), venues (Wembley Stadium and Hull Craven Park) and official ticket agents (Ticketmaster, See tickets and AXS) would all do the same.
This will not be a small number. For context, the Music Of The Spheres tour was recently named the biggest rock tour of all time and surpassed the $1 billion (USD) gross mark for the full run of concerts starting in 2022. Coldplay remains a big ticket seller and the Their eleven-show run in July 2024 grossed $66 million according to Billboard Boxscore data. Even after deducting production costs and such, the donation from these UK shows will be seismic.
Music Venues Trust will be at the center of the project in parallel Save our scene and other key stakeholders. It comes at a turning point for the UK music scene. Data from MVT reported that 125 sites were closed in 2023and these parts such as North West England they have suffered more than anywhere else.
Mark Davyd, founder and CEO of MVT, has spoken about the challenges that exist and what needs to be done to protect and revitalize the UK scene. The newly elected Labor government has made positive noises about a mandatory ticket fee to large-scale music events in the country that will be reinvested in the grassroots scene.
Talk is cheap, but Coldplay – who have a new album out Music of the Moon on October 4 – they've put their money where their mouth is. They follow British rock band Enter Shikari who have teamed up with MVT in 2023 to donate £1 from every ticket sale to ensure the future of the stage.
After the announcement, David spoke to me Bulletin board on the state of the grassroots music industry and what Coldplay's donation will do for its future.
How did this collaboration with Coldplay come about?
Davyd: “Talks started in December 2023 and came directly from the band and their management. The band was very concerned about what was going on at home and touring venues, and had worked with management to consider who they should be in contact with. They contacted an organization called Save Our Scene run by George Fleming who in turn recommended speaking to the Music Venues Trust. By February 2024, it was agreed that when they announced their shows for 2025, they would contribute to the base to support venues, artists and promoters.”
Did you ever feel that it might not pay off and that there would be opposition to such a seismic move?
“We know that there are many companies that would like to at least slow down this process, if not completely avoid it, which is a bit disappointing as it is the music industry itself that benefits from programs like this supporting young and emerging artists. I'm trying to push the point that ultimately, financial support in the grassroots ecosystem will create the talent of the future that people make a lot of money from.
But ultimately we all respond to what the artists tell us they want. If it's an artist of the stature of Chris and the lads and they want something done, people will find a way to do it. I'm a huge fan of their other work, including making their concerts carbon neutral, and I think that's a good example of something that's important to the band and important to the management and everyone in the ecosystem around them.”
It must feel very nice that it was Coldplay, a band that was exactly on the journey you're trying to protect.
“The vast majority of artists who pioneer stadiums have a history of their progression in the music industry that almost always involves grassroots venues. Even Dua Lipa played a bunch of smaller venues early in her career.
This particular one has a ring of authenticity. I actually booked Coldplay three times at the Tunbridge Wells Forum some 25 years ago! I think the band and the management around them understand very well these arguments and discussions about why the cascade of grassroots music is so important.”
What will the money do for the grassroots music scene?
“We will limit this money as this kind of money needs to achieve many things. It's not just about venues, it's also about artists and supporters. It's about bringing more artists to more venues in more places in the UK
There are definitely some things that spaces will benefit from: there are spaces, for example, that are not accessible, where we can support so that more people can use it. Because of the nature of where this money is coming from, I think we will also look at what we can do in terms of energy consumption in venues.
We want to create something that is truly impressive, meaningful and we want every pound to do something constructive. Everyone in the industry knows there is a real crisis in base touring. There are fewer tours as artists can't afford to play them, but the duration of the tours is a real challenge along with the locations they go to.
Oasis' first tour in 1994, for example, was 34 shows. There isn't a band that plays this level of grassroots shows anymore. It just doesn't happen. This means that huge swaths of the country can't see up-and-coming bands and artists as they hit the market.”
Do you think the base to stadium pipeline is still feasible?
“I think it's still possible. We've been doing it for 60 years. There is no shortage of enthusiasm for live music. We're selling more tickets than ever across the board, but we're selling them to a shrinking demographic. So this is a project not just for the artists, but to create future music consumers.”
Do you have any idea how much this donation might end up totaling?
“I'm not doing it at this stage. We're not being evasive about it, but there are a lot of things at play regarding their production costs that we obviously don't know yet. But we know that 10% of a pitch's journey is quite a large amount and will have a significant impact. This will mean venues stop closing, tours can go ahead and promoters can take a chance on bands who really need support but don't have the money to make it happen. It's so impactful. It won't be geographically located in one place, it will spread right across the UK. We will see more shows taking place with better facilities in the venues. this money will achieve a lot.”
The Oasis ticket scandal in the UK has reignited the debate about how tickets are sold, their value and what could be done on these major tours to support the future of music. What was your answer?
“I was disappointed with Oasis, mainly because if you go back to Commons select committee hearings in Marchyou can read the words of music industry representatives telling MPs that they are aware of the problem with the base venues and that they are going to fix it. By the time they were saying that, Coldplay had already made that decision and taken the lead while obviously the music industry was working on solutions… but we didn't see solutions for this job that the industry said they were going to take on.
Everyone is talking about Oasis, but I can throw out other names. There were announcements for Catfish and The Bottleman and Glass Animals around the same time. These are artists that if you asked them, they would fully understand that the grassroots is important and that music in our communities is important, so why is there no contribution from these shows? I'm not blaming anyone, but if we're going to stand in parliament and say we're going to solve this, let's solve it.”
Will MVT look to work with more artists like him in the future?
“Absolutely, our door is very open to anyone on this matter. I want this to become the new normal – I don't think it's foolishly ambitious. There are too many examples of industries – all well-functioning industries – to reinvest for future profits. Once you start talking about it as an investment program in research and development, I don't think companies should resist it, but they should think “this makes perfect sense”.
from our partners at https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/coldplay-grassroots-music-donation-music-venues-trust-1235779395/