Coldplay’s Chris Martin has been teasing the imminent end of the band since 2021, but now he’s confirmed exactly when the British group will retire: following the release of their 12th album.
In an interview with Zane Lowe on Apple Music 1, Martin discussed the band’s trajectory as they gear up to release their upcoming 10th album, Moon Music. “We are only going to do 12 proper albums and that’s real. Yeah, I promise,” Martin told Lowe. “Because less is more and for some of our critics, even less would be even more! It’s really important that we have that limit.”
While 12 may seem like an arbitrary number of albums for a band to call it quits at, Martin sees it more as a way of emulating the greats. “There’s only seven Harry Potters. There’s only 12 and a half Beatles albums, there’s about the same for Bob Marley, so all our heroes. Also, having that limit means the quality control is so high right now and for a song to make it, it’s almost impossible, which is great. And so where we could be coasting, we’re trying to improve.”
Although their 12th album will be their final record, Martin says there will likely be some side projects with his bandmates Jonny Buckland, Guy Berryman, and Will Champion after they call it quits. But for now, Coldplay fans will have to savor Moon Music when it arrives on October 4th, because after that, there will only be “two more proper albums” left from the band. Fans can grab a special translucent blue vinyl edition of Moon Music here.
Coldplay just wrapped up the European leg of their long-running “Music of the Spheres Tour,” which became the first rock tour (and second tour ever) to gross $1 billion. Next up, they’ll play shows in Australia and New Zealand starting in late October. Come 2025, they’ll headline stadiums in Asia, as well as play a run of newly announced summer headline shows in the UK, including eight dates at London’s Wembley Stadium. Get tickets to Coldplay’s international dates here.
Revisit our list of Coldplay’s 10 best songs.