Music

It’s been nearly 20 years since Coldplay first topped the Billboard 200 with their 2005 album X&Y — and while the music world (and the rock world in particular) has changed over dramatically countless times in the years since, it’s 2024 and the band is once again back on top.

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Moon Music, the band’s 10th studio album, debuts at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 this week, with 120,000 first-week units — their first LP to top the chart since Ghost Stories in 2014. Meanwhile, the album’s “We Pray” single, featuring Little Simz, Burna Boy, Elyanna & TINI debuts at No. 86 on the Billboard Hot 100, joining “feelslikeimfallinginlove” as the second Hot 100-charting hit from the set.

Why was this album able to become the band’s first Billboard 200 No. 1 in a decade? And how has Coldplay managed to stay relevant on the chart for over 20 years now? Billboard staffers answer these questions and more below.

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1. Coldplay’s Moon Music debuts at No. 1 this week — their first release in a decade to top the Billboard 200 — with 120,000 units moved. What do you think the biggest reason behind the album’s stellar chart performance is?

Katie Atkinson: I’m crediting the awareness campaign. Even the most casual TV viewer likely saw Coldplay at some point on their screens in the past two weeks, from SNL to the morning shows to (checks notes) QVC? Sure. Chris Martin was even popping up doing karaoke in costume in Las Vegas or joining his band for a surprise mini-set inside’s Brooklyn’s Rough Trade record store, so even if you don’t own a TV, you might have just seen him around. After scoring a No. 1 Hot 100 hit with the BTS collab “My Universe” but failing to top the Billboard 200 with its parent album Music of the Spheres back in 2021, it definitely felt surprising to see this one go straight to the top – but the full-force promo campaign had to be part of it.

Katie Bain: No shade, but I haven’t actively paid attention to Coldplay since Viva La Vida. That said, I feel like I was absorbing them and this new album through osmosis in this album cycle via their SNL appearance, general media presence and the cultural consciousness bump created by working with Little Simz, Burna Boy, TINI and Elyanna. If they’ve worked their way into my world and ears, I’m guessing they’ve worked their way into a lot of others as well. Plus “We Pray” is a pretty cool song. 

Kyle Denis: My mind immediately goes to their blockbuster tour and two-decade-strong relationship with their fans. At this point, Coldplay is effectively a legacy act that can still corral fans to buy new material. They don’t necessarily need a hit like “Hymn for the Weekend” or “Viva La Vida” to shift copies of a new album. Of course, it also helps that Moon Music serves as the sequel to 2021’s Music of the Spheres, which hit No. 4 on the Billboard 200, earned four Grammy nominations and spawned a Hot 100 chart-topper in “My Universe” (with BTS). Just as they tapped BTS and Selena Gomez for their last album – and megastars like Beyoncé and Rihanna for earlier LPs – Coldplay also used collaborations with some of the brightest stars across buzzy genres like UK hip-hop and Afrobeats (Burna Boy, Little Simz, Ayra Starr, etc.) to draw additional sets of eyes to Moon Music.

There was also the week-long string of pop-up listening parties held around the world to coincide with the album’s release on Oct. 4, as well as a Record Store Day collaboration in the States for indie retailers on Oct. 1. Given the focus on physical album sales, it’s no surprise that Moon Music sold 106,000 pure copies, including 29,000 in vinyl sales – their highest ever sales week on that format. 

Jason Lipshutz: The continued stature of Coldplay, who have been playing stadiums for years now and developing a loyal fanbase that bridges generations. Although Moon Music is their first No. 1 album since 2014, every full-length in between has reached the top 10, and 2021’s Music of the Spheres also returned the band to the top of the Hot 100 with their BTS team-up “My Universe.” Moon Music partially capitalized on a quiet release week to secure a No. 1 debut, but it’s not like Coldplay needed a big comeback — they’ve been active in popular rock throughout this century, and crossing into the mainstream when needed.

Andrew Unterberger: I’m not totally sure what happened on this album cycle to make Moon Music more of a sales hit than Music of the Spheres, so I wonder if they were just smarter with their variety of physical releases for the album — and maybe if fans were moved enough by the sustainable, eco-friendly design of their records and packaging to buy a couple copies where previously they might not have. But I dunno!

2. “We Pray” (No. 87) is the lone debut from the album on the Hot 100 this week, joining “feelslikeimfallinginlove” (No. 81), which debuted a few months ago. Do either of them seem like they have potential to grow into bigger hits now that the album is out?

Katie Atkinson: After seeing it performed on SNL alongside “We Pray,” I’m going to go with “All My Love” as the potential sleeper hit from Moon Music. I could see adult pop radio picking it up and following a path to a similarly earnest Coldplay ballad like “Fix You.”

Katie Bain: With the global nature of all the artists involved (Africa, Europe, the Middle East and South America) it seems like “We Pray” could gain traction in other territories, so I wouldn’t be surprised to see this one become a bigger, wider hit. Also I think this one might grow among listeners who might not initially give a new Coldplay song a chance but then give a second look at the artists involved and realize that this one kind of bangs. 

Kyle Denis: Not particularly. They might play well with AAA radio, but I don’t see either song growing into bigger hits. 

Jason Lipshutz: Like a lot of Coldplay anthems, “feelslikeimfallinginlove” snuck up on me as a durable hit with a chipper chorus — maybe not as enthralling as “Every Teardrop Is a Waterfall” or “Adventure of a Lifetime,” but agreeable enough to earn alt-radio spins and get added to streaming playlists full of new-school love songs. I could see the single continue to grow — especially if it gets scooped up for a TV or movie synch, with Chris Martin’s “Feels like! I’m falling in l-o-o-ove!” soundtracking a first kiss as the camera lifts into the sky.

Andrew Unterberger: Both are pretty strong songs, so maybe all they need is a spark to catch fire — but generally, they feel more like 2010s hits than 2020s hits to me.

3. Coldplay’s span of No. 1 albums now reaches nearly two decades, all the way back to 2005’s X&Y. What’s the biggest thing that has allowed the band to have the kind of commercial longevity that’s proven so rare for 21st century rock bands?

Katie Atkinson: 100 percent, it’s their live shows. I vividly remember when “Clocks” came out in 2002, from A Rush of Blood to the Head, and it felt like it turned Coldplay from an unplugged piano-forward band to a laser-light-show stadium act overnight (with the piano still very forward). While they’ve released a mixture of understated ballads and bombastic rockers since then, and added a lot more electronic sounds as well, they’ve leaned into their reputation as a must-see touring act, which has sustained their fanbase and the excitement around them in the decades since.

Katie Bain: Again, no shade, but Coldplay’s sound has been more or less sonically consistent (bright, hopeful, sophisticated and pop-adjacent without ever being overly saccharine or overtly challenging) and thus generally palatable for a very wide, very global audience. And while I haven’t always listened to every new Coldplay album, they’ve usually managed to clock one big monster hit from each of their LPs, which has helped them maintain relevance even among people who might not be actively following them. They’ve also been savvy in following genre trends and working with the biggest artists in those fields over the years. 

Kyle Denis: They’ve been willing to evolve with changes in the music landscape by incorporating new sounds and styles that keep them, at the very least, adjacent to the mainstream without completely compromising their brand and identity. It also helps that Chris Martin is a bonafide star and celebrity outside of Coldplay, so there’s always some level of attention on the band.  

Jason Lipshutz: Coldplay has always been highly aware of pop trends, and have worked hard to find common ground between their sweeping, stadium-ready rock and what is dominating top 40. Maybe longtime fans blanched at collaborations with artists like The Chainsmokers, BTS and Avicii — but those songs were effective, and produced three more top 10 hits for the band, at a time when most rock quartets were not coming close to the Hot 100’s upper reaches. And these team-ups have generally happened without Coldplay betraying their core sound or deserting their diehard listeners, making them a savvy group that can still keep their center intact.

Andrew Unterberger: They’ve never stopped trying, which is commendable — look at most other huge rock bands when they hit the 20-year mark, and they’ve usually already codified into the band they’re going to be the rest of their career. Coldplay keep shape-shifting and retinkering and finding new collaborators to take their sound and their audience to new places. You don’t know what you’re going to get with a new Coldplay album — or how much you’re necessarily gonna be into it — but you know it’s probably not gonna be the same as the last one, which makes it always worth checking out.

4. Where Coldplay has ended up musically a quarter-century into their career is obviously very different than where they started at the turn of the millennium. Are you impressed with the scope of their evolution, or do you think they’ve gotten a little too far away from what initially made them great?

Katie Atkinson: I recently revisited their 2000 debut album Parachutes and was struck by how stark it is. There’s so much silence and so little production. So yes, they’ve come a lifetime from that first album, 24 years later, but there are some core tenants that have never left – namely, the sincerity and the melodies. Their music has always been unabashedly earnest, and any day 1 fans who are still sticking with the band are hanging on to that heart-on-your-sleeve authenticity.

Katie Bain: I’ll always yearn for another “Clocks” or “God Put a Smile Upon Your Face” or “Talk” and the indie rock qualities that made those songs special and era-defining. Obviously the bulk of their stuff since then has drifted from that sound, but I guess you’ve got to give them credit for subsequently carving out a durable, broadly palatable sound while also trend-hopping among the hot genre of the moment with their EDM tracks “Sky Full of Stars” with Avicii and The Chainsmokers, the K-Pop juggernaut “My Universe” with BTS, etc. A lot of early Coldplay listeners would likely say that these songs aren’t totally our thing, but we can still sing along to every one of them. 

Kyle Denis: I think it’s a little bit of both. When I sit and think of the full breadth of their catalog and all the different spaces they’ve ventured into, it’s undoubtedly impressive. I think their last two records have found them moving a bit too far away from what initially drew me to them, but I think their almost chameleonic approach to pop and rock music are still on display – just not in my preferred iteration.

Jason Lipshutz: As a big Coldplay defender, I’ve appreciated watching them grow and experiment in ways that have prevented them from sounding stale or predictable, in a manner that most of their contemporaries haven’t been able to over the past decade. Some of those forays have not worked, and that’s fine; I’d rather Chris Martin and co. keep shape-shifting into different pop-rock modes than double down on the same formula endlessly. And when their change-ups have really taken off, they’ve complemented their early sound in satisfying ways — it’s why “Yellow,” “Paradise” and “Higher Power” can all be stacked next to each other in a stadium setlist and not feel too disjointed. 

Andrew Unterberger: I admire their consistent sonic evolution, but as one of the few-but-mighty devout Ghost Stories supporters, I do wish Chris Martin would try to be a little more personal in his songwriting rather than always trying to go for the universal. But when you do universal as well as Coldplay as historically, it’s an understandable default instinct.

5. There’s been a lot of great Moon Music in pop history — what’s your favorite “Moon” song or album?

Katie Atkinson: Have to go with “Harvest Moon” from Neil Young. And actually, I think Chris Martin & co. could do a really lovely cover of it.

Katie Bain: Nick Drake’s Pink Moon. Also Feist’s “My Moon, My Man” and the Boys Noize remix of that song.

Kyle Denis: Obviously, “Moon River” — and I prefer the Frank Ocean version. I’ll also give a shoutout to Teejay’s “Moon Light,” Brandy’s Full Moon LP, and the timeless “Blue Moon” — any a cappella rendition will do. 

Jason Lipshutz: Let’s go with a pair of early ‘00s indie masterpieces: Modest Mouse’s The Moon & Antarctica for album, The Microphones’ “The Moon” for song.

Andrew Unterberger: I probably gotta go with one of the great guitar epics in underground rock history, Television’s “Marquee Moon.” But honestly, goddamn, there have been so many great moon songs and albums! Shout out to the moon, a criminally underappreciated muse.