Back in August, Coldplay's former manager Dave Holmes — not the MTV guy, or the DJ/composer, or my lifelong concert buddy — sued the band for $12 million worth of unpaid commission from their 10th album, 2021's Music Of The Spheres, and their still-unreleased 11th LP. (A new Coldplay album is coming soon, I guess. They're due for another artsy one.) Now the band is countersuing Holmes, who managed them for 20 years, for even more money.
As Variety reports, Coldplay's countersuit is asking for $17 million. The band claims Holmes allowed their Music Of The Spheres Tour to spiral out of control financially, including the expenditure of $10 million on unusable bespoke stage pylons and a video screen that was too big. They also claim Holmes borrowed $20 million from tour promoter Live Nation to fund a property development in Canada.
A rep for Holmes told The Sunday Times, "Coldplay know they are in trouble with their defense. Accusing Dave Holmes of non-existent ethical lapses and other made-up misconduct will not deflect from the real issue at hand — Coldplay had a contract with Dave, they are refusing to honor it and they need to pay Dave what they owe him."
