Ed Sheeran celebrated his 33rd birthday a day ahead with over 60,000 people at the Singapore National Stadium on Friday (Feb 16).
The party, which was the British singer’s sold-out concert, was part of The +-=÷× (Mathematics) Tour’s Asian leg. From flashy pyrotechnics to an unexpected guest star, it seems as though Sheeran threw a near perfect one.
English singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran performs at his +-=÷× tour held at the National Stadium on Feb 16, 2024. (Photo: CNA/Eugene Goh)
Kicking off the concert was opening act Calum Scott. The English singer-songwriter was greeted with a chorus of cheers as he filled the stadium with his single Lighthouse.
Calum Scott opens Ed Sheeran's +-=÷× tour held at the National Stadium on Feb 16, 2024. (Photo: CNA/Kirby Tan)
With his infectious energy and captivating voice, he continued to charm the audience with a series of songs including You Are The Reason and his rendition of Dancing On My Own. He even wished the audience “gong xi fa cai” and yelled “huat ah”, eliciting applause and laughter from the crowd.
At 7:40 pm, the stadium lights dimmed, and a five-minute countdown took over the iconic circular video screen. As it reached the final 10 seconds, the audience began chanting the numbers, creating a vibe almost akin to a New Year's Eve countdown.
On cue, the stage lit up as Sheeran took the spotlight, playing the opening riffs of Tides.
English singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran performs at his +-=÷× tour held at the National Stadium on Feb 16, 2024. (Photo: CNA/Eugene Goh)
In true Ed Sheeran fashion, he took centre stage alone, with nothing but a guitar and loop station.
For those who may be unfamiliar, a loop station is a device that records and instantly plays back musical performances in real-time – a device that Sheeran has been using in his performances since he was 14.
English singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran performs at his +-=÷× tour held at the National Stadium on Feb 16, 2024. (Photo: CNA/Eugene Goh)
After his electrifying performance of Blow and I'm A Mess, he shared: “Everything you hear tonight is completely live, there is no backing track whatsoever.
It’s all made live on the spot, controlled by my feet. Once it is deleted, it will not be the same tomorrow.”
And as if he didn’t seem talented enough, he demonstrated how the loop station worked before seamlessly transitioning into his next song Shivers.
English singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran performs at his +-=÷× tour held at the National Stadium on Feb 16, 2024. (Photo: CNA/Eugene Goh)
Throughout the concert, Sheeran commanded the stage as he performed songs like Castle On The Hill, Don’t and Lego House. He started singalongs, encouraged the audience to get up from their seats and dance, and barely stopped moving around the stage.
Of course, his efforts didn’t go to waste. Speaking to CNA Lifestyle, Ryan Lin, who attended with his university friends, said he thought the concert was amazing.
“Ed didn’t even need a band with him. He was just a one-man show and didn’t even take a long break, which is insane,” shared the 22-year-old.
English singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran performs at his +-=÷× tour held at the National Stadium on Feb 16, 2024. (Photo: CNA/Eugene Goh)
While it is true that Sheeran can perform on his own, the singer mentioned that some songs are better when done with a group. For the tracks under his collaboration albums, he invited his band on stage to perform songs and mashups, including Beautiful People, Boat and Peru.
The best parts of the show, however, came in the second half of the concert. Sheeran surprised fans with Happier – a song that wasn’t originally part of the setlist.
Before singing, he shared that he hadn’t played or even heard Happier in five years but relearned it after someone told him it was a popular song in Singapore.
But the highlight of the show was when he welcomed his special guest, Singaporean singer-songwriter JJ Lin to the stage. Fans erupted into cheers as the pair sang a rendition of JJ Lin’s Twilight – a Chinese song.
Ed Sheeran and JJ Lin performing at the +-=÷× tour. (Photo by Mark Surridge/@marksurridge)
Lin later posted a snippet of the performance on Instagram. "Not just Mathematics, it was MAGICAL!!!," he wrote.
Speaking to CNA Lifestyle, many said the unexpected duo shocked them, and that they were impressed by the accuracy of Sheeran’s pronunciation.
One fan, Junwei, 22, said: “I could really see the amount of effort he put into his show, (from how) he memorised the Chinese lyrics and sang it for us,” adding that it was “definitely” the highlight of the night.
The audience at Ed Sheeran’s +-=÷× tour held at the National Stadium on Feb 16, 2024. (Photo: CNA/Eugene Goh)
As the concert drew to a close, Sheeran, who performed for over two hours, revealed that he plans to spend his birthday eating local food and enjoying the city. And as fans know, he will also be basking in the afterglow with an intimate performance at Singapore’s Capitol Theatre on Feb 17.
Continue reading...
The party, which was the British singer’s sold-out concert, was part of The +-=÷× (Mathematics) Tour’s Asian leg. From flashy pyrotechnics to an unexpected guest star, it seems as though Sheeran threw a near perfect one.
English singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran performs at his +-=÷× tour held at the National Stadium on Feb 16, 2024. (Photo: CNA/Eugene Goh)
Kicking off the concert was opening act Calum Scott. The English singer-songwriter was greeted with a chorus of cheers as he filled the stadium with his single Lighthouse.
Calum Scott opens Ed Sheeran's +-=÷× tour held at the National Stadium on Feb 16, 2024. (Photo: CNA/Kirby Tan)
With his infectious energy and captivating voice, he continued to charm the audience with a series of songs including You Are The Reason and his rendition of Dancing On My Own. He even wished the audience “gong xi fa cai” and yelled “huat ah”, eliciting applause and laughter from the crowd.
At 7:40 pm, the stadium lights dimmed, and a five-minute countdown took over the iconic circular video screen. As it reached the final 10 seconds, the audience began chanting the numbers, creating a vibe almost akin to a New Year's Eve countdown.
On cue, the stage lit up as Sheeran took the spotlight, playing the opening riffs of Tides.
English singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran performs at his +-=÷× tour held at the National Stadium on Feb 16, 2024. (Photo: CNA/Eugene Goh)
In true Ed Sheeran fashion, he took centre stage alone, with nothing but a guitar and loop station.
For those who may be unfamiliar, a loop station is a device that records and instantly plays back musical performances in real-time – a device that Sheeran has been using in his performances since he was 14.
English singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran performs at his +-=÷× tour held at the National Stadium on Feb 16, 2024. (Photo: CNA/Eugene Goh)
After his electrifying performance of Blow and I'm A Mess, he shared: “Everything you hear tonight is completely live, there is no backing track whatsoever.
It’s all made live on the spot, controlled by my feet. Once it is deleted, it will not be the same tomorrow.”
And as if he didn’t seem talented enough, he demonstrated how the loop station worked before seamlessly transitioning into his next song Shivers.
English singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran performs at his +-=÷× tour held at the National Stadium on Feb 16, 2024. (Photo: CNA/Eugene Goh)
Throughout the concert, Sheeran commanded the stage as he performed songs like Castle On The Hill, Don’t and Lego House. He started singalongs, encouraged the audience to get up from their seats and dance, and barely stopped moving around the stage.
Of course, his efforts didn’t go to waste. Speaking to CNA Lifestyle, Ryan Lin, who attended with his university friends, said he thought the concert was amazing.
“Ed didn’t even need a band with him. He was just a one-man show and didn’t even take a long break, which is insane,” shared the 22-year-old.
English singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran performs at his +-=÷× tour held at the National Stadium on Feb 16, 2024. (Photo: CNA/Eugene Goh)
While it is true that Sheeran can perform on his own, the singer mentioned that some songs are better when done with a group. For the tracks under his collaboration albums, he invited his band on stage to perform songs and mashups, including Beautiful People, Boat and Peru.
The best parts of the show, however, came in the second half of the concert. Sheeran surprised fans with Happier – a song that wasn’t originally part of the setlist.
Before singing, he shared that he hadn’t played or even heard Happier in five years but relearned it after someone told him it was a popular song in Singapore.
But the highlight of the show was when he welcomed his special guest, Singaporean singer-songwriter JJ Lin to the stage. Fans erupted into cheers as the pair sang a rendition of JJ Lin’s Twilight – a Chinese song.
Ed Sheeran and JJ Lin performing at the +-=÷× tour. (Photo by Mark Surridge/@marksurridge)
Lin later posted a snippet of the performance on Instagram. "Not just Mathematics, it was MAGICAL!!!," he wrote.
Speaking to CNA Lifestyle, many said the unexpected duo shocked them, and that they were impressed by the accuracy of Sheeran’s pronunciation.
One fan, Junwei, 22, said: “I could really see the amount of effort he put into his show, (from how) he memorised the Chinese lyrics and sang it for us,” adding that it was “definitely” the highlight of the night.
The audience at Ed Sheeran’s +-=÷× tour held at the National Stadium on Feb 16, 2024. (Photo: CNA/Eugene Goh)
As the concert drew to a close, Sheeran, who performed for over two hours, revealed that he plans to spend his birthday eating local food and enjoying the city. And as fans know, he will also be basking in the afterglow with an intimate performance at Singapore’s Capitol Theatre on Feb 17.
Continue reading...