NEWS
Coldplay
James Marcus Haney*U.K. superstars Ed Sheeran and Coldplay joined forces Tuesday night (Oct. 12) to perform each other's hits at the band's new album launch event.
Held at London's O2 Shepherd's Bush Empire, the British rock band celebrated the upcoming release of their Max Martin-produced ninth studio album Music of the Spheres, due Friday via Parlophone/Atlantic Records. They enlisted the help of the English pop singer to sing their 2005 hit "Fix You," which peaked at No. 18 on Billboard's Adult Alternative Airplay chart.
Later, Chris Martin & co. returned the favor by strumming along to Sheeran's 2017 smash "Shape of You," which ruled the Billboard Hot 100 for 12 nonconsecutive weeks and remains the most-streamed song on Spotify with nearly 3 billion streams.
Both acts have recently scored Hot 100 No. 1s with K-pop supergroup BTS. Sheeran co-penned "Permission to Dance,"which was released on the same CD as the band's other leader "Butter," which debuted at No. 1 on the Hot 100 in July. Meanwhile, Coldplay and BTS took the throne last week when their out-of-this-world collaboration "My Universe" landed at No. 1, earning Coldplay its second chart-topper and BTS its sixth. "My Universe" was released as the second single from Music of the Spheres, which the band has been teasing with mysterious lyric billboards in London's Westfield Shepherd's Bush shopping center that spelled out its eighth track "Biutyful."
In promotion of the album, Coldplay and Amazon Music also hosted an immersive two-day event starting last Friday called "The Atmospheres," which, according to a press release, was a "custom-built installation [where] fans will be transported to The Spheres – the distant solar system that plays host to the band’s latest album, where each of the twelve tracks is twinned with a different planet." The sensory experience was held at four venues in London, New York, Berlin and Tokyo.
Watch their Sheeran and Coldplay's performances of "Fix You" and "Shape of You" below.
Sharleen Spiteri joined BBC Radio 2’s The Sara Cox Breakfast Show ahead of Texas taking the stage to launch the main live music programme at Radio 2 in the Park in Stirling.
Checking in from rehearsals, the Texas frontwoman spoke about getting ready for the band’s opening performance at City Park. Radio 2’s annual flagship festival takes place there from 11 to 13 September 2026. "I’m match fit because I’ve had a couple of days’ rehearsals," Spiteri said. "We’re kicking the whole weekend off, which we’re very much looking forward to, so everybody’s got to get ready to party."
Before the live acts take over, Friday’s DJ Pre-Party gets the weekend started with Radio 2 favourites Sara Cox, DJ Spoony, Gary Davies, Michelle Visage, and Rylan behind the decks.
Jo Whiley helped set the mood with a special programme from Stirling’s Tolbooth venue. Working with BBC Introducing Scotland, the broadcast put the spotlight on Scotland’s emerging music scene through performances and conversations with Fright Years, Alice Faye, and James Emmanuel.
Fright Years, a four member band from Edinburgh, played "Never Been Wrong" and offered their take on Simple Minds’ "Waterfront." Glasgow singer and songwriter Alice Faye, the BBC Introducing in Scotland 2026 winner, paired "Some Brief Encounter" with a rendition of Lulu’s arrangement of "I Started a Joke." James Emmanuel, who was born in Nigeria and now lives in Edinburgh, sang "Brothers & Sisters" before taking on Chaka Khan’s "I’m Every Woman."
"We’re all about celebrating BBC Introducing and all the music that’s come out of Scotland," Whiley told listeners. "It's about celebrating the local music scene and the incredibly important work that BBC Introducing does to support independent, up-and-coming artists."
Joining the conversation were Stephanie Cheape, presenter of BBC Introducing in Scotland, Tara McLoughlin, venue manager for Stirling Council, and student radio presenters representing the University of Stirling’s Air3 Radio.
Listeners can catch the complete interviews and live performances from the weekend’s programmes on BBC Sounds.
