Conscious Coupling: Watch Chris Martin Join Kings of Leon for ‘Fans’
After Coldplay took the main stage at BBC Radio One’s 1 Big Weekend in Glasgow on Saturday, Chris Martin returned the following day to assist Kings of Leon on a rendition of Because of the Times‘ favorite “Fans.”
“I’d like to welcome the second most famous singer here today to come join us on this song,” said Kings of Leon frontman Caleb Followill, adding: “He said he’s not gonna sing, but we’ll see.”
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Instead, Martin picked up an acoustic guitar and helped lead the Nashville quartet through the bubbling, refreshing track. And, perhaps unsurprisingly, as the crowd got into it, Martin couldn’t resist joining Followill at the microphone to belt out the track’s final chorus. “We finally have someone famous in our band,” the Kings of Leon frontman cracked as Martin left the stage.
Kings of Leon will spend the next few months on the road in Europe, before returning to the U.S. on July 31st to continue touring behind their latest album Mechanical Bull. The trek runs through the first few days of October and includes a headlining set at Budweiser’s Made in America Festival in Philadelphia.
As for Martin and Coldplay, the group just released their sixth LP, Ghost Stories, much of which details the frontman’s “conscious uncoupling” with wife Gwyneth Paltrow. While Martin acknowledged in a recent interview that grappling with the fallout was difficult, it did provide creative inspiration: “You have to really not run away from that stuff,” he said. “Life throws these colorful challenges at you. . . what we decided to do on Ghost Stories was to really be honest about it and say, ‘This is what’s been happening.'”