<\/p>\n
Ed Sheeran<\/a>\u2019s enduring global success is because the UK singer-songwriter \u201csets himself the highest of standards\u201d, his label boss has told Music Week.<\/p>\n As Sheeran prepares to launch a new era with the Play album (September 12), Atlantic co-president Ed Howard<\/a> has spoken about the \u201cfun\u201d campaign and reflected on his 15-year working relationship with the British superstar.\u00a0<\/p>\n Howard signed Sheeran to Atlantic\u2019s Asylum imprint<\/a>, where he was then head of A&R, in early 2011.<\/p>\n \u201cIt would be hard to imagine somebody with more of a firm plan for his future than Ed had at that time, or more ambition, focus and drive to get to that place,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cHe had a plan for two sets of five albums,\u201d said Howard of their meetings in late 2010. \u201cI think he told me that actually [at the time]. So this is a man that thinks in the very long term.\u201d<\/p>\n The rest, of course, is history as Sheeran became one of the biggest artists in the world, so far amassing 14 UK No.1 singles and eight No.1 albums on the way.\u00a0<\/p>\n As well as being crowned the biggest artist of the 2010s by the Official Charts Company, he is joint No.1 with Sabrina Carpenter<\/a> for most weeks at the singles summit (23) in the 2020s.<\/p>\n To date, Sheeran\u2019s scored 43 Top 10 singles, including new hits Azizam (No.3 peak, 443,367 sales to date \u2013 Official Charts Company) and Sapphire (No.5, 188,495 sales to date). His dozens of hits have spent 323 weeks \u2013 six years \u2013 combined in the Top 10 since 2011.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s unbelievably rare,\u201d said Howard of Sheeran\u2019s hitmaking prowess. \u201cHe says it stems from a ridiculous work ethic when it comes to the writing. In my opinion, he\u2019s extremely gifted as well \u2013 but he probably writes more songs than everybody else.\u201d<\/p>\n Azizam, the lead single from Play, was a bold launch for the campaign. Co-written with Savan Kotecha<\/a> and regular collaborator Johnny McDaid<\/a>, the Persian-influenced track was recorded with Swedish\/Iranian producer Ilya Salmanzadeh<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s always been willing to take risks and push himself outside of his perceived comfort zone,\u201d said Howard. \u201cThat\u2019s also why he\u2019s still here after all this time. That [single] is not the safe option at all in terms of this album, but it\u2019s absolutely amazing as a record \u2013 I think it\u2019s going to be around forever.\u201d<\/p>\n For the Play era, Howard said the singer-songwriter from Suffolk is \u201cbringing musical cultures and musicians together in a way that I don\u2019t think anybody else can credibly do\u201d.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s also a hallmark of his career, he can blend styles and work with musicians from across the piece,\u201d he added. \u201cIt\u2019s been a wonderful thing to see the reception from the Persian community. A positive outcome already in this campaign has been seeing that new energy from different parts of the world.\u201d<\/p>\n Following more introspective albums Subtract and Autumn Variations, both in 2023, Sheeran returned to his traditional collaborative writing process for Play, bringing in Blake Slatkin<\/a>, Cirkut<\/a> and Amy Allen<\/a>, among others.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s finding new people to work with, and new ways of expressing himself after all this time,\u201d said Howard. \u201cI think that\u2019s the biggest success of the record.\u201d<\/p>\n Howard credited the \u201camazing collection of talented people\u201d behind Sheeran, including Stuart Camp<\/a>, Gaby Cawthorne<\/a> and their new team at Grumpy Old Management<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cThey\u2019re amazing partners to a record label because they do their job very well, but they also allow us to do ours,\u201d Howard said of longtime manager Stuart Camp and his team.\u00a0<\/p>\n Howard continues to A&R Sheeran, a role which might see the pair discussing potential collaborators or single choices.\u00a0<\/p>\n He also acknowledged the wider team \u2013 including Warner Music UK CEO Tony Harlow<\/a>, Atlantic co-president Briony Turner<\/a>, MD & president of promotions Damian Christian<\/a> and Sam Spencer<\/a>, EVP \u2013 and former Warner leaders Max Lousada<\/a>, Lyor Cohen<\/a>, Julie Greenwald<\/a> and Ben Cook<\/a>, among others.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n He\u2019s always been willing to take risks and push himself outside of his perceived comfort zone<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n Ed Howard<\/p>\n
\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Sheeran remains driven following the conclusion of the Mathematical albums era.<\/p>\n \u201cThe man sets himself the highest of standards for everything that he does, and is incredibly ambitious, and that seeps into the whole team,\u201d said Howard. \u201cBut at the same time, he really cares about people. That\u2019s why they continue to want to support him all around the world, and he\u2019s still in the game and doing as well as ever after 15 years.\u201d<\/p>\n Tracks from Play have made a global impact and put Sheeran back into Spotify\u2019s Top 5 artist rankings with 99 million monthly listeners.<\/p>\n Azizam broke airplay records in Germany, while Sapphire secured a No.1 breakthrough in India, where it was the first international track to top Spotify\u2019s local chart in three years.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s off to a really good start, expectations for the album are extremely high in the UK and globally,\u201d said Howard.<\/p>\n As well as anticipating multiple hits, Howard said the album \u201cstands up incredibly well as a body of work\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen people get to listen to it in September, they will see a level of quality in terms of production and innovation on the sonic side, and also a level of songwriting aptitude that they, hopefully at this point, have come to expect from Ed,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n The campaign has seen a build-up throughout the year with multiple singles, global performances and also three nights at Ipswich Town\u2019s Portman Road last month, where Play-branded tuktuks provided fans with a ride to the stadium.<\/p>\n Howard described the gigs as a \u201chuge homecoming moment\u201d, with Sheeran performing four songs from Play.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWe took the view that we wanted to have multiple tracks out ahead of the album, which would allow us to explore the musical cultures, and the different places around the world that it could speak to,\u201d explained Howard. \u201cWe wanted to have a summer of being able to have fun with those things in the most genuine, least kind of marketing way possible.\u201d<\/p>\n As well as a \u201cbeautiful\u201d BST Hyde Park duet with Olivia Rodrigo, Howard hailed Sheeran\u2019s pop-up pub, which went to Coachella and featured Shaboozey and Alex Warren.<\/p>\n \u201cIt felt really fun and different,\u201d said Howard. \u201cYou should expect more of the same playful attitude in the run-up to the album.\u201d<\/p>\n Sheeran set a high bar with 2017 blockbuster Divide (4,420,972 sales to date). The opening week\u2019s streaming consumption has still not been surpassed in the UK.<\/p>\n \u201cI think about the advent of streaming and the growth in DSPs globally that we\u2019ve seen with Spotify, and his career aligns with the start of that,\u201d said Howard. \u201cHe\u2019s a real original streaming-era artist.\u201d<\/p>\n