Coldplay brought 2024 ARIA-nominated local artist Pania on stage to perform a verse of their song “We Pray” at their sold-out Melbourne stadium shows this week.

Pania shared the experience on Instagram, captioning it, “I PRAYED 4 MOMENTS LIKE DIS @coldplay.”

Reflecting on the performance, the West Melbourne artist said, “It was an incredible and surreal experience to perform with Coldplay in my hometown in front of so many people! Chris and the band were so nice and made me feel really welcome. I tried not to think too much about it because I was nervous but looking back on the footage I saw of him and I performing in front of his piano was so crazy to me!!  I’m doing it again tonight so am going to try and take in the moment.”

The concert at Marvel Stadium marked a historic occasion for Coldplay, as it was the first time they performed without their bass player Guy Berryman, who was unable to make it due to illness.

Coldplay‘s concert at Melbourne’s Marvel Stadium last  night was a first on several fronts.

Frontman Chris Martin addressed the crowd, saying, “I have to say, thank you so much for coming to our show today,” frontman Martin said at the top. “It’s a shame but we waited for the last minute to tell you that our beautiful bass player Guy is very, very sick. And will not be (playing) for the first time. I’m sorry for you guys down here who are waiting to see Guy.

“He’s not going to be able to play today. We’ll have a slightly different show and we’ll do our best to make it amazing, and I know that it will be amazing because we’re in Melbourne with all of you beautiful people.”

Coldplay’s ‘Music of the Spheres World Tour’ will feature eight shows in Australia, starting with four at Marvel Stadium, before heading to Sydney for four more at Accor Stadium. Next month, they will perform three nights at Auckland’s Eden Park, making history as the first act to play there three times, at New Zealand’s largest stadium.

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The band’s latest album, Moon Music, debuted at No. 2 on the ARIA Chart this month. All of Coldplay’s albums, starting from 2000’s Parachutes, have peaked at No. 1 or No. 2 in Australia, with seven reaching the top spot.

Live Nation is producing the tour, with other local support acts including Ayra Starr, Shone, and Emmanuel Kelly.

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