![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Thanks to his penchant for far-reaching, streaming-ready collaborations, from Stormzy to Beyoncé to Bring Me The Horizon, he can also inhale the whiff of second-hand cool even if the concept remains alien to him. If one genre isn’t to your tastes, then fear not, another will be along soon. He’s also malleable – when he’s done with hip-hop, for example, he doesn’t need an image overhaul to then revert to balladry. His personality rarely gets in the way of the music his social media presence is a promotional tool rather than a distraction. He can skip between genres with ease, be it indie-folk, pop, R&B, grime, hip-hop, because each new persona is a projection on to a blank slate. As an artist he rarely impedes the songs he creates. And therein lies the crux of Sheeran’s success. The cynicism of the songs’ creation was, of course, irrelevant to the listener. It quickly established him as a master of both worlds. So third album ÷ (Divide)’s two lead singles, Castle on a Hill and Shape of You, were crafted to simultaneously hit two different demographics: the former’s drive-time rock was perfect for Radio 2, while the latter’s tropical-tinged R&B (the song was initially offered to Rihanna) was aimed at Radio 1. ![]() Rather than shroud his music-making in layers of mystery, or bejewel it with highfalutin concepts, Sheeran revelled in its laser-focused box-ticking. Sheeran prized relatability from the start – shuffling awkwardly into glitzy award shows in a hoodie. Set in opposition to the untouchable, deity-like superstars such as Beyoncé (who would later collaborate with Sheeran on UK Christmas No 1, Perfect), and the avant-garde meat dress-sporting likes of Lady Gaga, artists such as Sheeran, Adele and Emeli Sandé made open, emotionally straightforward, resolutely “authentic” music broad enough to leave no one feeling alienated. His success chimed with the rise of what journalist Peter Robinson called the New Boring, a prevailing anti-fun agenda that’s since become deep-rooted. Programming: FRED assistant engineer: Will Reynolds ( engineer) engineer: Graham Archer, FRED and Johnny McDaid additional producer: PARISI executive producer: FRED, Johnny McDaid and Ed Sheeran ( UK singer-songwriter, “Shape of You”) producer: Graham Archer (task: vocal), FRED, Johnny McDaid and Ed Sheeran ( UK singer-songwriter, “Shape of You”) assistant mixer: Kieran Beardmorre, Charlie Holmes ( UK mix engineer / producer) and Matt Wolach mixer: Mark “Spike” Stent ( producer, engineer) acoustic guitar: Johnny McDaid and Ed Sheeran ( UK singer-songwriter, “Shape of You”) bass guitar, drums (drum set), guitar, keyboard and piano: FRED percussion: Ed Sheeran ( UK singer-songwriter, “Shape of You”) slide guitar: Iain Archer background vocals: FRED and Ed Sheeran ( UK singer-songwriter, “Shape of You”) vocals: Ed Sheeran ( UK singer-songwriter, “Shape of You”) phonographic copyright (℗) by: Warner Music UK Limited ( not for release label use!) (in 2021) recorded at: Decoy Studios ( Woodbridge UK) in Woodbridge, Suffolk, England, United Kingdom, Fieldwork Studio in London ( Greater London), England, United Kingdom, Fieldwork Studio in Suffolk, England, United Kingdom, Gold Valley Studios, Promised Land Music Studios in London ( Greater London), England, United Kingdom, Stamford Street in London ( Greater London), England, United Kingdom and The Tree House ( Suffolk, England) in Suffolk, England, United Kingdom mixed at: The Mixsuite in Los Angeles, California, United States recording of: Bad Habits writer: Fred Gibson, Johnny McDaid and Ed Sheeran ( UK singer-songwriter, “Shape of You”) publisher: Ed Sheeran Limited, Promised Land Music Ltd.The roots of Sheeran’s ubiquity can be traced back to his mainstream arrival a decade ago. ![]()
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