Coldplay

Tuesday, July 22nd

Originating from London, England, four band members make up what is known today as "the New U2" of music: Coldplay. Lead singer, Chris Martin, Jonny Buckland on lead guitar, bassist Guy Berryman and drummer Will Champion. Coldplay has achieved worldwide recognition with their multiple award winning albums and singles such as "Yellow", "The Scientist", "Fix You", Grammy Award-winning "Clocks" and most recent top-charted single, "Vida la Vida" which is also the title of their 2008 album. This alternative rock group can be compared to Jeff Buckley or Oasis and most controversially discussed, the ever popular U2. Their very heavy, yet soft rock never ceases to draw energy from their millions of fans as lead singer and songwriter Chris Martin examines and expresses his feelings in every lyric.

This particular event for XRT wasn't the typical "work" night for the interns, but rather an enjoyable experience to see a live performance of one of the greatest and growing bands worldwide. Our XRT truck was parked in front of the United Center, downtown Chicago as concert-goers waited in line to enter the building. The interns, one of our supervisors and Frank E. Lee one XRT's personalities, greeted fans as they stopped by to say hello and share their love of XRT with us. 

Earlier last week, we had a contest on the website for XRT listeners to win tickets to the show and one lucky winner would receive front-row tickets! I was in charge of contacting the winners via the phone from the office last week. This is probably one of my favorite things to do when working in the office. It allows me to connect with XRT fans, establish relationships with them and continue to improve my communication skills. When I finished calling all the winners, I saved the front-row ticket winner as my last call. Having done this many times throughout the summer, I didn't quite know what to expect. I have had people nonchalantly react as surprised and others who didn't even know who they were going to see! This winner definitely topped my chart as the most excited fan of them all. The conversation went something like this:

Me: Hi this is Heather from 93xRt, is Sally* available?

Sally*: XRT!??? Hi!!!!!

Me: (laughing) How are you today?

Sally*: What did I win?!!!! (with  much excitement in her voice)

Me: Well, you had entered a contest online---(I was cut off)

Sally*: COLDPLAY! Ahhhhhh! Really! I never win anything! I love Coldplay!

Me: (smiling and trying to calm her) Like I said you entered a contest online---(cut off again)

Sally*: Did I win tickets to their show at the United Center?

Me: (giving up at this point)  Yes, you have won a pair of tickets to Tuesday's show. Congrats!

Sally*: (dramatically excited) Really! Ahhh! 

Me: (holding the phone away from my ear) So you must be a huge fan of Coldplay?

Sally*: I am probably the biggest fan! I am so excited!

Me: (preparing for another outburst) You should be more excited about the next thing I am going to tell you. You have actually won front row tickets to the show! Congrats!

Sally*: (no words, just screaming)

Me: Congrats again and I'll see you at the United Center on Tuesday at 7:00pm with your tickets!

Granted typing this conversation holds no comparison to what I experienced, but nonetheless it was quite the highlight of my day. Meeting Sally* at the concert was definitely an experience to take note of. She proclaimed her love of our station to the interns and myself and proceeded to give me a hug because I was "the reason she won the tickets."

The concert was definitely the highlight of my summer---one of the best all-time shows I have ever seen. The interns and I watched from the upper level and sang along to every song. The band started the show off strong with an instrumental version of "Life in Technicolor" and smoothly transitioned into a powerful version of "Violet Hill" which seamlessly led into "Clocks" which bathed the audience in red lights and multi-colored lasers. The show revolved around their new album but also included a good mix of greatest hits such as "In My Place", "Yellow" and a personal favorite, "Fix You". The show only gained more energy and excitement as the two hours pressed on into the night, but the high point of the concert came when lead singer, Chris Martin, announced that they were filming a video for "Lost" which would appear on their DVD later this year. They ran through the song twice, immediately following with a small acoustic performance on a stage that was directly below our section in the middle of the crowd. The energy and thrill that came from this concert is incomparable to any other band I've seen live. I had an amazing time!