Impact of the Music of the Spheres World Tour

Publications have widely documented and analysed the environmental, cultural, economic, commercial and philanthropic influence achieved by British rock band Coldplay with the Music of the Spheres World Tour (2022–24). Described as a media phenomenon, the concert run marked their return to live entertainment after the COVID-19 pandemic and was said to be responsible for a shift in public attitude towards them, further illustrating the impact the group have on popular culture. The Times hailed it as "the greatest live music show that humans have yet devised" in visual, emotional and melodic terms.^[1]

While announcing the first performances, Coldplay also revealed a series of sustainability efforts to reduce their CO₂ emissions by 50%, in comparison to the A Head Full of Dreams Tour (2016–17). Those included the creation of brand new LED stage products and a partnership with BMW to design the first mobile rechargeable show battery in the world. This association, along with the fact that Neste was their biofuel provider, led to greenwashing accusations. Nevertheless, the group reduced carbon footprint by 59% and planted more than 9 million trees. Pollstar wrote that they ushered into "a new era of sustainable touring",^[2] while Time placed them among the most influential climate action leaders in the world.

Beyond sold-out stadiums, Coldplay drew crowds of ticketless fans in cities including Barcelona, Rio de Janeiro and Kaohsiung. Interest in the shows was considered unprecedented across Asia, Europe, Latin America and Oceania, prompting measures against ticket scalping and debates about pricing. The government of countries such as Indonesia decided to make their event documentation process more flexible after the band could not schedule enough concerts to meet demand. Moreover, places visited by the tour experienced financial boosts in hotels, restaurants, bars and many other services. A macroeconomic impact was similarly registered in Argentina and Singapore. On music charts, Coldplay's discography had a resurgence in sales and streams. They teamed up with Global Citizen and the Love Button Global Movement to endorse local non-profit institutions as well.