For years, the British singer-songwriter, Ed Sheeran, has crafted lyrics and music to produce songs, from “Perfect” to “Visiting Hours,” that have pulled on the heartstrings all too well.
And his most recent single — released on May 1 — titled “Old Phone” is no exception.
Here’s the inspiring and heartfelt story behind the song, the music video and the singer’s upcoming album.
The song
Before releasing his new single, Sheeran launched an Instagram account that features never-before-seen pictures, videos, texts and even lyric notes from the phone he retired in 2015, reported Billboard.
Sheeran said on Instagram that going through his phone “felt like a time capsule” of his life in 2015.
At the beginning of the music video for “Old Phone” the Grammy award winner shares how the song is all about him finding his old phone and all the past messages he found.
“I was finding text messages from people that aren’t even here anymore and reading conversations with people that I wish that I could have conversations with now,” Sheeran says in the video.
The song itself reflects his feelings of “nostalgia” and “overwhelming sadness” that came as he reviewed messages from old friends and family members.
Sheeran wrote the song at 2 a.m. in India while he was jet lagged, and then recorded it that morning, according to Billboard.
“It feels like a song that should’ve been on my debut album, but also a song I couldn’t have written until I experienced real life things happening to me,” the singer explained, per Billboard. “It makes me emotional to sing, I hope it finds some emotion in you too. Maybe it makes you switch on your old phone and look at where you were a decade ago too. Whatever it does, I’m glad I wrote it.”
But instead of just hoping for his fans to feel this emotion, Sheeran takes time to see it first hand while creating the song’s music video.
The music video
The “Old Phone” music video was released on Thursday, May 8, in which the town of Ipswich, Massachusetts got its time in the spotlight, according to Northshore Magazine.
In the video, Sheeran explains wanting to create an English-style pub called The Old Phone Pub to play a gig and have fans bring their old phones to share meaningful memories with him.
“I thought I would build a pub, somewhere, and do a gig,” Sheeran explains in the video. “But I put it out there to my fans and said, ‘If you want to come to this gig, go on your old phone and find a message that means a lot to you or a video that means a lot to you.’”
From a mother sharing a video of two of five daughters playing in the street, to friends frolicking in the snow after a breakup, fans had the special opportunity to share past memories with Sheeran.
“I wanted to just make it feel like the song does, which is raw, stripped back, emotional, nostalgic and special,” the four-time Grammy winner says in the video.
As Sheeran is shown interacting with fans and getting involved with the community in Ipswich throughout the video, he said that it was his “favourite music video (he’s) ever made,” according to WCVB.
The album
On May 1, Sheeran announced his next album, “Play,” along with a video compilation on Instagram.
”Play was an album that was made as a direct response to the darkest period of my life,” Sheeran said, according to Instagram. “Coming out of all of that I just wanted to create joy and technicolour, and explore cultures in the countries I was touring... It’s a real rollercoaster of emotions from start to finish, it encapsulates everything that I love about music, and the fun in it, but also where I am in life as a human, a partner, a father.”
Variety reported that he was inspired by the global sounds of India and Persia as he was putting the album together and that his other recent release for the album, “Azizam,” incorporates Persian influences.
“Play” continues a 10 album series idea Sheeran had when he was 18 years old, according to Billboard. The idea includes albums titled “Plus,” “Multiply,” “Divide,” Subtract," “Equals,” followed by “Play,” “Pause,” “Fast Forward,” “Rewind” and “Stop.”
With a neon pink artwork on the cover, the new album features inspiring phrases as a type of manifesto to describe what “Play” really means, according to the official website.
It reads, “Play is leaving the past behind. Play is colourful. Play is dancing. Play is nostalgic. Play is mirror images. Play is capturing moments. Play is knee jerk reaction. Play is telling people you love them while you have the chance. Play is longing. Play is getting lost in the night. Play is everlasting. Play is youth. Play is a gift. Play is now.”
The upcoming album will be released on September 12, 2025 and is available to pre-order and pre-save, per EdSheeran.com.