Coldplay's Chris Martin knows that not everyone will be a fan of his music, and that's perfectly fine with him.
The British rocker, 47, spoke to Rolling Stone about Coldplay's reputation, as the group is still sometimes considered a punching bag despite being one of the biggest bands in the world.
“It would be terrible if we lived in a society where everyone had to [like the same thing]. We are a very, very easy, safe target. We're not going to bite," Martin said on the cover of Martin, and his bandmates Johnny Buckland, Guy Berryman and Will Champion still have dozens of dates left, with shows scheduled until September 2025.
Still, Coldplay have come a long way since 2005, when The New York Times called them "the most insufferable band of the decade" in a scathing review of their album X&Y.
The following year, Martin told Rolling Stone's Joe Levy that he knew all art was at risk of criticism and that he used it to start a media firestorm.
"Everything you do, someone says it's great and someone says it's terrible," he explained. “I think [The Times] is correct [and we're doing what we can to change that… We're obsessed with getting better and better. So the criticism is essential and although we had some difficult things, I now, nine months later, I like the fact that we have taken it and we just want to try to make us a little bit more patient."
Whatever Coldplay did worked, as their next album, Viva la Vida, or Death and All His Friends, was a huge success, winning Best Rock Album at the Grammys and scoring the title of Most sold in 2008.
Coldplay's latest album, Moon Music, came out in October and topped the Billboard 200 charts.
