Global music sensation Ed Sheeran is rewriting the rules again as he enters a new chapter with the release of his eagerly anticipated eighth studio album,‘Play’. Featuring Persian strings woven into acoustic guitar riffs and a touch of the Indian percussion instrument, the Tabla, rising underneath, Sheeran’s new album represents a deliberate shift for the Grammy-winning singer-songwriter towards ‘joy and technicolour’.
In a move few global pop stars have ever attempted in history, he has confirmed a posthumous album sealed in his will, ‘Eject’, to be released only after his death. In an interview with Apple Music’s Zane Lowe, Sheeran said: “Eject is the album in the will. It’s actually in my will, and Cherry gets to pick the tracks for it. It’s full, like it’s in there if I were to go tomorrow.”
The 13-track Play marks the first instalment in a new five-album series with titles that echo a cassette deck: Play, Pause, Fast Forward, Rewind and Stop. When recording ‘Play’, Sheeran spent a month touring India. The single, ‘Sapphire,’ was created by teaming with award-winning Indian singer and composer, Arijit Singh. In the words of Sheeran: “I made this record all over the world, finished it in Goa, India… It’s a rollercoaster of emotions from start to finish; it encapsulates everything that I love about music and the fun in it.”
Lyrically, ‘Play’ offers a fascinating, sometimes jarring mix. The album incorporates elements of Indian and Persian culture, with a specific focus on sounds originating from instruments like tablas, bansuri flutes, the santoor, and a hammered dulcimer of Iranian origin. From tender reflections on domestic life in ‘In Other Words’ to surprising, sharp barbs aimed at a former friend in ‘A Little More’, and a direct address to his plagiarism lawsuits on the ‘Opening’ track, the album reveals interesting shades of emotions ranging from muted melancholy to vexation. The album reflects an artist grappling with his public persona versus his private realities. While it does spring surprises through the incorporation of global influences, the experimentation is not sustained, as the album soon retreats into a pop formula caught between global experimentation and familiar balladry.
‘Play’ isn’t just another Ed Sheeran album; it’s a statement of intent. By threading Persian nodes, Indian percussion, and Amy-esque horn arrangements into his trademark pop structures, Sheeran has risked alienating the comfort-zone listener to stretch his sounds, while discovering himself. Not every experiment lands; some of his global textures feel incomplete and confusing. From the calculated creative pivot of ‘Play’ to the unprecedented foresight of ‘Eject’, he is demonstrating a sophisticated understanding of how to manage an enduring artistic brand. Sheeran isn’t just releasing music; he is actively engineering a multi-generational legacy, ensuring his voice, vision, and artistic integrity will resonate far beyond his own lifetime.
