Research into the Band/Artist

1. ED SHEERAN By Megan Sellar

2. BACKGROUND
Edward Christopher ‘Ed’ Sheeran is an English singer- songwriter
who combines different genres of music including acoustic soul, folk,
pop, and hip-hop to create a new and conventional style of music.
He was born on the 17th February 1991 in the market town of
Hebden Bridge, West Yorkshire. His father was an art curator
and his mother was a culture publicist-turned-jewellery designer.
His parents both ran an independent art consultancy called
Sheeran Lock which closed in 2010. As a young boy he used to
sing as part of the local church choir and play guitar. He also
used to write and compose songs during his time at Thomas Mills
Hill School in Framlingham, Suffolk. Some of his early childhood
memories including going to an intimate Damien Rice gig in
Ireland and being a patron of the Youth Music Theatre UK.

3. MUSIC CAREER
Ed Sheeran first began recording music in 2005 which led to the release of his first EP – The Orange
Room EP. He later moved to London and concentrated on performing in small venues where he played a
total of 312 gigs over the space of 12 months. In February 2010 Ed Sheeran posted a video through the
entertainment and music channel SB.TV which led to the singer Example inviting Sheeran to accompany
him on tour. During the same year, he also released his second EP called ‘Loose Change’ which featured
his later debut single ‘The A Team’. The song entails a story about a prostitute who takes class A drugs
and is based on a true story by Sheeran after meeting a girl called Angel whilst volunteering at a Crisis
homeless shelter. The song became the highest selling debut single on the UK singles chart in 2011 and
sold approximately 57,607 copies in the first week after it was released. In 2011 he later signed with
the American music record label companies Atlantic Records and Asylum and released his debut album
‘Plus’ (stylised as ‘+’) on 9th September 2011. The album includes songs which have been recorded with
a small acoustic guitar as he describes his thoughts and feelings around subjects he cares about in his
own life, performing with a "soft toned, flexible voice" and a hip-hop theme. In the first week of the
album's release, it sold over 100,000 copies and went on to be the 9th biggest selling British album in
2011.

4. MUSIC CAREER (CONTINUED)
Ed Sheeran also co-wrote for several different artists including One Direction and Taylor Swift and
provided vocals for the single ‘Everything Has Changed’ featured on Taylor Swift’s fourth album Red
which was one of the biggest-selling new albums of 2012. Sheeran also performed across North
America as the opening act for Taylor Swift’s ‘The Red Tour’. He later released his single ‘I See Fire’
which was to be featured in the end credits of the film ’The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug’ and part
of the film's soundtrack. On the 23rd June 2014, he released his second studio album ‘X’ which includes
the singles ‘Sing', 'Don't’, ‘Thinking Out Loud’ and many more.
Ed Sheeran performing at Southside Festival, Ed Sheeran at the Frequency Festival, 2012 2014 Ed Sheeran album ‘ X’

5. AWARDS AND NOMINATIONS
Over the years, Ed Sheeran has been nominated for a selection of different awards, which he has
won 12 in total. The table below shows a few of the awards he has already achieved:
Year Award Ceremony Award Nomination
2011 BT Digital Music
Awards
Breakthrough Artist of
the year
Ed Sheeran
2012 Brit Awards British Breakthrough
Act
Ed Sheeran
Ivor Novello Awards Best Song Musically
and Lyrically
‘The A Team’
2013 Nickelodeon UK Kids'
Choice Awards
Favourite UK Male
Artist
Ed Sheeran
2014 MTV Video Music
Awards
Best Male Ed Sheeran
with Pharrell Williams
Radio Disney Music
Awards
Best Musical
Collaboration
‘Everything Has
Changed’ with Taylor
Swift
Teen Choice Awards Choice Single Male
Artist
‘Sing’

6. SOCIAL MEDIA
Ed Sheeran also uses different forms of social media including Twitter and Facebook to communicate
with his audience and help promote his singles. His official Twitter page has over 10.7 million followers
and includes daily updates about the release of his new singles, albums and music videos as well as
details on upcoming tours. For example in his photos he has included pictures from his most recent
music video ‘Thinking Out Loud’ which was released on 7th October. He has also included a link to the
new music video on his official Facebook page which is used as a marketing tool to persuade the pubic
to click the link and go and watch the video.
Ed Sheeran’s official Twitter page Ed Sheeran’s official Facebook page

7. SOCIAL MEDIA (CONTINUED)
Ed Sheeran’s official website includes news updates, concert dates, pictures and lyrics to his songs.
Similarly to his official Facebook page, the website also features his most recent music video ‘Thinking
Out Loud’ as well as links to his other social networking sites including Twitter and YouTube. He also
has an online store which is available on his website enabling the audience to buy merchandise. His
new album ‘X’ is also featured on his website which takes viewers to the iTunes Store to download. I
believe by having a wide variety of social media accounts enables the audience to connect to him from
a personal level and feel involved in the production of his music career.
Ed Sheeran’s official website Ed Sheeran’s official online store