Coldplay Pay Tribute to Olivia Newton-John

Crowds at Wembley Stadium were treated to a serious singalong moment at Coldplay‘s concert on 16 Aug. The band, fronted by Chris Martin, paid tribute to the late Olivia Newton-John by belting out a rendition of “Grease” anthem “Summer Nights”.

Joined by Natalie Imbruglia for the third night of their six shows in the capital, Martin, who is in a relationship with Dakota Johnson, sang the iconic John Travolta lyrics, with jazz musician Jacob Collier joining for the chorus, while Imbruglia took Newton-John’s lines. Naturally, the 90,000 capacity stadium sang joined in to a rapturous applause. Prior to this moment, the Australian singer collaborated with the band to sing her hit, “Torn”, the same song she had previously surprised audiences with at an Olivia Rodrigo concert earlier this summer.

Coldplay chose the opening song from the 1978 film “Grease” to pay homage to Newton-John, the iconic actress and singer who passed away on 8 Aug. after a long battle with breast cancer aged 73. The world mourned the loss of the star, whose performance in the musical coming-of-age film inspired millions. Celebrity tributes poured in from the likes of Kylie Minogue, Mariah Carey, and costar Travolta who wrote: “Your impact was incredible. I love you so much.”

US country band, The Chicks, also recently honoured Newton-John by performing a live cover of “Grease” ballad “Hopelessly Devoted to You”. On 13 Aug., the band played at the Gorge Ampitheatre in Washington, as lead singer Natalie Maines said: “We lost a worldwide sweetheart last week: Olivia Newton-John. I thought I was Olivia Newton-John from, like, four to 12 [years old], and then I only wished I was Olivia Newton-John.”

We have a feeling we’ll be seeing a lot more tributes to the iconic singer in the months ahead. “Tell me more, tell more”, you ask? Watch the Coldplay and Imbruglia rendition below.

Coldplay led a tribute to Olivia Newton-John by covering Summer Nights! It was EPIC! @natimbruglia @coldplay #MOTSWT #MusicOfTheSpheresWorldTour #Coldplay #WembleyStadium pic.twitter.com/k505jAFupm

— Sia. (@Sias_Creations) August 16, 2022