Coldplay's frontman Chris Martin is speaking his mind when it comes to Toronto's newest addition to the city's concert venues. Coldplay, a Grammy award-winning band known for their record-breaking stadium tours, is in Toronto, playing a total of four shows. During these back-to-back performances at Rogers Stadium, not to be confused with the Rogers Centre, Martin called it a "weird stadium in the middle of nowhere."
The venue, an open-air stadium that seats 50,000 people, is located near Downsview Park in North York, which is considerably far from Toronto's downtown concert venue hotspot. While the venue is accessible via public transit and located near Downsview Park Station, it still requires a 10-minute walk from the station to reach the gates.
Although it's designed to host major touring acts, with performances from Chris Brown, Oasis and Hozier coming later this summer, the location and logistics of the venue itself have raised eyebrows since it opened in June. Early shows were riddled with issues, from crowding to long wait times and the confusing signage within the venue, bringing criticism from attendees and the artists performing.
Martin first made the remark during Coldplay’s Monday night show, thanking fans for enduring "all the traffic, the travel and the trains" just to make it to see the show. The next night he doubled down, once again referencing the stadium's unusual placement with a second comment, calling it a "very bizarre stadium, a million miles from Earth."
While Martin’s comments were delivered in a lighthearted manner, they have sparked more conversations regarding the new venue's location and if it was truly built to serve the city — or if it is just serving Torontonians inconveniences?
Coldplay will hold two more concerts on July 11 and 12 at Toronto's Rogers Stadium. ~Erin Grace
A 10 minute walk is nothing to complain about. Too many people are just drinking the kool aid these days. And there’s traffic everywhere in Toronto no matter what part of town you’re in. Seriously just a PR stunt!
You can’t trust that Roger’s will do anything correctly. Who planned this venue and why are concert goers impelled to leave early to make the last train before the concert is finished. This should have been organized prior to the grand opening. I also feel sorry for the neighbours who live near the venue having to deal with the noise and traffic. I guess it’s months without sleep or peace.
Loved the concert. Not concerned about a little bit of walking. The staff were great and kept the flow of people moving safely. 50,000 people at any event makes for lots of work. If there were no incidents, what is there to complain about. A downtown venue has people leaving in every direction. I am 75 and in good shape. Maybe some people should train for some walking. As for the neighbours, I saw some on TV interviewed and they could listen to the concert without a ticket. The concerts are not every night and have to finish by 11 pm due to noise bylaw. I just love to be able to be part of a great community that gets to enjoy concerts.
Crybaby Chris Martin and all the Toronto crybabies! My team lost again WAH! WAH! WAH! 2021
@ Nikki - you should read the article in its entirety. You focused solely on the 10 minute walk while completely missing the mark on the stadiums other criticisms including the location and logistics of the venue itself. You neglected the crowding and long wait times for food, water, washrooms, etc.
SOME BRITISH WANKER COMPLAINING ABOUT OUR TORONTO VENUES, GO FIGURE.