What do you get when you mix a ginger with a voice like Jason Mraz? Ed Sheeran! Well, not really, but close enough.
Born in England (Halifax specifically), Ed picked up a guitar and started playing and writing songs at a very young age. Starting in 2005, Ed began to play gigs all around England; 312 in just 2009 alone. Also in that year, he went on tour with 'Just Jack,' gaining more and more recognition as he went on.
Here is Ed playing "You Need Me" while being the supporting act for Just Jack.
It wasn't until 2011 when Ed gained mainstream success. He came out with his debut single "The A Team" which sold 58,000 copies in its first week alone. Not bad for an indie, underground ginger.
Ed's music video for 'The A Team'
From there, Ed went on to win two Brit awards (almost equivalent to the US Grammys) for 'Best British Male Solo Artist' and 'British Breakthrough of the Year.' His most recent album '+' debuted at number one on the British charts and also debuted at number 1 on Itunes in the US just 6 weeks ago. Ed has now become pretty popular in the US and I regret not featuring Ed sooner when he was under the radar a little more.
Here is Ed performing 'Give Me Love' my personal favorite song from his album '+.'
I discovered Ed through a close friend and ever since I have been obsessed. His lyrics are incredibly beautiful and there is always some deeper meaning to all of them. What I love about Ed's songwriting, is that even though he does write a few songs about all that typical stuff that most artists sing about, he writes songs about life and things no one else really dares to sing about. Songs like 'The A Team,' about someone struggling through life (my interpretation) or fun songs like 'Drunk,' where he writes about getting drunk to take away pain. All of his songs just make you feel good listening to them. Need something to cheer you up? Download Ed's new album!
No offense to Ed, but he is living proof that you do not need to be extremely good looking to make it in this industry. He has shown that pure talent can get you somewhere and that gives me hope that this industry isn't fully corrupt. But truthfully, I think Ed is sexy in his own way because of how talented he is ;)
Furthermore, Ed is one of those performers that you're going to get what you pay for. Ed gives you a different experience seeing him live. Now, I don't have that experience of seeing him live (going to see him in September and can't wait!) but from videos and word of mouth, Ed "adds an extra flavor" to his songs when he performs them live. Ed is going on a US national tour and I highly recommend seeing him! Support the gingers!
To get tickets to see Ed Sheeran live: http://www.ticketmaster.com/Ed-Sheeran-tickets/artist/1560779
To download Ed's new album: http://itunes.apple.com/gb/album/id448214084
