The 1975 to stage world’s first “carbon-removed” event at The O2 in London
The 1975 are to stage the world’s first “carbon removed” live event at The O2 in London.
The incentive was announced earlier this week, when organisers at the venue confirmed that they would be hosting the world’s first carbon-removed arena events at the beginning of 2024, and The 1975’s live shows will be the first gigs to be held under the new format.
In a run of pilot events in February, the organisers will use a variety of methods to physically extract the carbon generated by the events and remove it from the atmosphere. “Using this data, the cost of removing the carbon associated with the events can be folded into the existing business model.
If successful, the pilot events will help pave the way for a new practice model for venues, promoters and tours worldwide, and help encourage the reduction of carbon emissions in the live entertainment industry going forward.
“We’re incredibly proud to be hosting the world’s first carbon-removed events here at The O2.,” said Sam Booth, the Director of Sustainability at AEG Europe.
“The perfect large-scale carbon-free event does not currently exist, but while the industry continues to innovate and improve to reduce emissions to their lowest possible level, carbon removals will remain an important piece of the puzzle.”
Mark Stevenson, the Co-Founder and Chief Impact Officer at CUR8 agreed, added: “What’s great about these shows is that we can demonstrate that it is now possible to fold the cost of removing the residual CO2 into the existing business model, such that fans won’t notice any difference in the gig experience.
“It’s a complete win-win-win – for artists and their fans who care about the climate crisis.”
The 1975 shows featured in the pilot run of the new eco-friendly design will be part of their recently announced 2024 UK and European ‘Still At Their Very Best’ tour.
The dates – announced at the end of last month – are set to be the band’s biggest European shows to date and will signal the end of the ‘Being Funny In A Foreign Language’ era.
Alongside the UK tour dates, the members will also embark on a European run, featuring stops in Lisbon, Madrid, Paris, Oslo, Copenhagen, Berlin, Milan and many more. It will wrap up at the Palladium in Cologne, Germany on March 22. Find tickets here.
The newly announced dates will follow the band’s 32-date North American tour, which starts in Sacramento, California on September 26.
This isn’t the first time that the band have used their fame to make a positive impact on the environment. Back in 2019, Matty Healy and co. called on their fans to plant trees in the band’s honour and commitment to tackling climate change.
“Fans of @the1975 unite! Let’s plant trees to honour our favourite band and what they stand for. Let’s plant a future!” the frontman wrote at the time.
Additionally, just a few months earlier, Healy praised the spirit of climate activist Greta Thunberg, hailing her “the most punk person he’s ever met”. This followed the band teaming up with Thunberg on ‘The 1975’ – a spoken word essay about the effects of climate change and the opening track from their album ‘Notes On A Conditional Form’. All proceeds for the track went to environmental campaign group Extinction Rebellion.
They also joined forces with climate change organisation Music Declares Emergency for a new charity t-shirt. Launched back in 2021, the design, which came in black and white t-shirt variations as well as on a white hoodie, was based around their rectangle logo, bearing the ‘No Music On A Dead Planet’ slogan alongside the words: “The 1975 for MDE.”
Visit here for more information on The O2’s sustainability practices and Good Vibes All Round initiative.
The post The 1975 to stage world’s first “carbon-removed” event at The O2 in London appeared first on NME.
Liberty Dunworth
NME
