Chris Martin (right) with Coldplay’s avid fan Ken Valiant Santiago
When Ken Valiant Santiago, a 21-year-old medical student at the University of the Philippines-Manila, found out that Coldplay, the British pop-rock band he idolizes, had included Manila as one of its stops in its “A Head Full of Dreams” concert tour, he promptly lined up for tickets and booked the best spot he could afford.
He was, however, forced to give up that ticket and forego the one-night show, after being diagnosed with stage 4 cancer, in February.
Mercifully, the group’s frontman, Chris Martin, is beloved by many, not only for his music, but also for the effort he puts into forging a genuine bond with his fans.
And so, while he was neck-deep in preparation for the concert on Tuesday, the singer-songwriter still managed to squeeze into his busy schedule a visit to his avid supporter battling a grave illness.
Later that day, Martin fulfilled Ken’s request that his favorite song “Ink,” from the album “Ghost Stories,” be included on the band’s setlist.
“Today, I was very lucky to meet a young man named Ken … But perhaps we can all send our best wishes and send him some noise now,” he told the packed audience at the SM Mall of Asia concert grounds. “We will have this recorded for you.”
“I hope you get well soon; we hope you feel better. Thank you for your kindness,” added Martin, during one of the one-night concert’s most poignant moments.
Ken’s brother, Kheil Vin Santiago, earlier wrote an open letter on Facebook, asking if the group could be so kind as to give his sick sibling a simple shout-out.
Luckily, the online plea went viral and eventually got the attention of concert promoter MMI Live chief executive officer Rhiza Pascua.
“Ken was surprised. We had no idea Martin was going to visit, because we knew he was already very busy that day. We didn’t have any expectations,” Kheil told the Inquirer.
Though Ken couldn’t fully speak, he and Martin got to chat using a drawing slate. “He’s a true-blue fan,” Kheil said of Ken, whose favorite pastime in the hospital is listening to Coldplay’s music. After Martin learned of Ken’s request, he immediately texted his band mates to practice the song.
And the gesture was greatly appreciated. In a Facebook photo, Ken is shown holding up his board, on which he wrote: “I can’t thank you enough … thank you with all my heart.” —ALLAN POLICARPIO