Superstitious Chris Martin 'Tortured by Fear He'll Die on the Road Like Buddy Holly' — And 'That Is Why He Has Ritual of Kissing Tarmac Before Flights'
Star Chris Martin is so terrified he'll lose his life in an airplane crash like the great Buddy Holly that he locks lips with the runway tarmac before boarding a flight.
Nov. 12 2024, Published 10:08 a.m. ET
Music legend Chris Martin is so terrified he'll lose his life in an airplane crash like the great Buddy Holly that he locks lips with the runway tarmac before boarding a flight.
The Coldplay icon carries out the unusual ritual before every plane ride, RadarOnline can reveal.
His latest runway pecking rite came this week when he shocked onlookers as he kissed the tarmac at Sydney Airport in Australia before boarding a private jet to Auckland, New Zealand.
Moments before he stepped onto the plane, the frontman, 47, got down on his hands and knees and pressed his lips to the ground.
Martin is said to be terrified he'll lose his life in an airplane crash like Holly.
In 1959, American rock and roll musicians Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and "The Big Bopper" J. P. Richardson were all killed in a plane crash near Clear Lake, Iowa, together with pilot Roger Peterson.
Holly was just 22.
Now Martin performs the unusual act after a brush with death he had earlier on in his music career.
The English star, who formed his band in London in 1997, says he almost died in 2005 when his plane hit a dust storm while flying over west Africa.
Martin performs the unusual act of kissing landing strip tarmac after a brush with death he had earlier on in his music career.
He was on his way to Ghana with charity Oxfam earlier that year when disaster almost struck just as the rocker's flight was coming into Tamale Airport.
"It was so terrifying, the plane was all over the place," he confessed.
"Once a year, for a week, all this dust blows over from the Sahara Desert. You could not see a thing. I couldn't see the ground and as it turns out, nor could the pilot.
"I found out we were about 200 meters up. The plane dropped. I don't know how he landed it. I was convinced he wasn't going to. Did the pilot know Chris Martin was on board? I don't think he gave a flying f**k. It was lurching all over. But somehow the pilot pulled it off and landed."
Martin was on his way to Ghana with charity Oxfam when disaster almost struck.
At the time, he was still married to actress Gwyneth Paltrow, with whom he shares daughter Apple, 20, and son Moses, 18.
During the horrific plane ordeal, Chris said his "mind was racing" and he thinking about his daughter, who was born one year prior.
"I thought, 'My daughter will have to get a stepdad'. I also thought, 'I've written a will. The band have finished the album but they know how I want to finish certain songs'."
Martin and Paltrow, 52, famously announced their split in 2014 by stating they were "consciously uncoupling".
At the time of the disaster, Matin was still married to actress Gwyneth Paltrow.
On Monday, airport workers watched on as the award-winning artist pressed his lips to the ground near the plane stairs.
Wearing a long-sleeved white shirt and black cargo pants, the Fix You hitmaker didn't seem to mind getting a bit dirty while performing his unusual pre-flight act.
He was also spotted pecking the ground when he landed in Malaysia last November ahead of his concert in the Southeast Asian country.
The star did a similar act in Indonesia during his previous tour.
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Coldplay had a rocky start during their Australian stadium tour when their first show was derailed after the band's bassist was hit with a health emergency.
Coldplay had a rocky start to their Australian stadium tour when their first show was derailed after one band member suffered a health emergency.
In a career first, the lead singer announced the band would play a show in Melbourne's Marvel Stadium without bassist Guy Berryman after he was struck down by an illness.
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