Chris Martin: 'Rihanna is the Frank Sinatra of our generation'

Coldplay frontman Chris Martin has hailed Rihanna as one of the world's greatest singers, comparing her to legendary crooner Frank Sinatra.

The 39-year-old musician, who enlisted the Barbadian singer, 28, to sing with him on Coldplay's 2011 track Princess of China, has fallen in love with the singer's voice, which he believes is close to perfect.

In fact, he believes the Umbrella musician is to music fans today what Frank Sinatra was to the generation who grew up listening to his iconic hits like Come Fly with Me in the 1950s and 1960s.

"She is the Frank Sinatra of our generation," he tells Britain's The Guardian newspaper. "She can turn anything into gold with that voice. Here’s the thing: if you speak to a good singing teacher about great opera singers, they will talk about consistency of tone.

When trying to explain what he feels when listening to her voice, Chris explains, "It’s like a beautifully squeezed tube of toothpaste. When you think of Rihanna’s voice you think of this whole, rich thing, solid like a tree trunk, and Drake is pretty similar.

"But Rihanna’s voice is just delicious for your ear. Sinatra had the same thing; anything he sang sounded pleasing to most people."

Chris and Rihanna were briefly romantically linked after the split from his wife of 11 years, Gwyneth Paltrow in 2014, as the Hymn for the Weekend singer was seen on a dinner date with her, but the couple did not embark on a serious relationship.

Coldplay are scheduled to play Britain's famous Glastonbury festival on Sunday (26Jun16), and Chris hopes to give the crowds a break from Britain's turbulent political climate, which on Thursday (23Jun16) saw the public vote to end the country's membership of the European Union, popularly known as, "Brexit".

"We’ve played it in all weathers," he says. "We’re in a time when a lot of things separate and divide us – Brexit, walls – so hopefully our concerts are saying the opposite at the moment. Everyone in our band comes from disparate places, but Glastonbury is the one place we all feel we come from."