Ed Sheeran

PUBLISHERS WEEKLY JUL 15, 2019

Celebrity biographer Smith (George: A Memory of George Michael) delivers a well-researched, entertaining look at Ed Sheeran, the British singer-songwriter who hit the American charts in 2017. Born in 1991 in West Yorkshire, Sheeran developed a stammer at a young age but began singing in his local church at the age of four and fell in love with singing as a form of speech therapy. After recording his first album in his bedroom at the age of 15, Sheeran was signed by Asylum Records in 2011; he'd go on to record such number-one songs in the U.K. and U.S. as "Shape of You," "Thinking out Loud," and "Perfect." As Smith explains in straightforward prose, Sheeran sold 150 million records worldwide and earned $432 million dollars touring in 2018 alone. Smith doesn't shy away from Sheeran's struggles, such as being sued by TLC for plagiarism (the group's songwriters were later credited on "Shape of You"). Smith celebrates Sheeran's life, highlighting his marriage to his childhood friend Cherry Seaborn and the many friendships he formed with Taylor Swift, Justin Bieber, and the members of One Direction (all of whom Sheeran had written songs for). Smith includes dozens of candid photos of Sheeran and playfully recalls ill-timed moments, such as him eating a sausage roll backstage before performing at a Victoria's Secret Fashion Show. Sheeran fans will relish this well-told biography.