Youth from Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation perform at Coldplay concert

Genevieve Martinson-Sault had no idea that she would be performing at a Coldplay concert to 50,000 fans in Toronto’s Roger Stadium but she faced it head on along with six other youth from the Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation in Ontario. “I got the text if I wanted to do it and we started practicing and it wasn’t until the day before I realized I’m actually going to a Coldplay concert and doing this and then the nerves started to kick in,” said Martinson-Sault. The youth started with a prayer in their Ojibway language followed by a traditional welcome and grand entry song. “The thing I hoped for the most while up on stage and singing was that my voice didn’t crack because I would have started laughing and not held it together,” smiled Martinson-Sault. Chief Claire Sault also gave greetings on behalf of her people and as the first and original peoples of the territory the concert was held on. “To Coldplay, I am so honored and so grateful that they recognized us and it really comes from that human side of things. That they recognize First Nations, they recognize First Nations Treaty lands and they recognize our foundation here so my message to them is I express my gratitude that they had that insight,” said Sault. Sault said a council member from the Squamish Nation in British Columbia who did a similar ceremony with Coldplay reached out to her on behalf of Chris Martin, Coldplay’s front man. Sault said she wanted this to be a moment for the youth and give them the stage and she admits the youth only had a few days to prepare and she kept the location of the venue from the youth up until the day before so that they could focus on practicing. “The parents were great, they just kept encouraging them and telling them that, ‘We can do this. We can conquer fear. We can do anything.’ And it really demonstrated their resilience to step up to that plate and cut it loose,” said Sault, adding the youth’s ages ranged from 5-years-old to 13-years-old. Sault said the Coldplay band and staff treated the youth and parents as esteemed guests and made sure they had everything they needed throughout Tuesday’s soundcheck. Sault said the best part was when the youth all decided to take a group picture with Coldplay’s stage in the background and that’s when Coldplay’s Chris Martin surprised everyone and snuck in to take a photo with them. “All of a sudden Chris Martin was in the picture with us, he snuck in there! So the kids were all really grateful and the coolest thing that happened to them was after we came off stage, we went underneath the stage and that’s when Chris Martin and the entire band came out to shake the kids’ hands and high-fiving them and it was just a real precious, precious time for the kids. I am super grateful for Coldplay and I’m happy the youth saw in themselves to conquer their own fear and step-up,” said Sault. “To our Indigenous youth, don’t be shy and just go for it when you get big opportunities. It will help benefit you for the future,” said Martinson-Sault. Sault said the youth learned a lot from their Coldplay experience and they will be much better prepared when they will perform for their next big event in Toronto for the FIFA World Cup 2026. Continue Reading