Sheeran exclusively said to Official Charts: Thank you so much for making Autumn Variations the Official Number 1 album in the UK. “It’s my first album on my own record label [Gingerbread Man Records], so this means more than any other award I’ve had. Thanks for all the support; it’s been amazing to get reconnected with the fans over the past few months.”  

He continued: “I hope you continue liking the album, and I’ll see you next year for the next one!”   

The international hit-maker took to his Instagram to express his gratitude for the achievement. He wrote: “Thanks so much for making Autumn Variations #1, I had no expectations for the record other than for fans to love it and feel it was their own. It being on my own label meant it didnt have the usual pressures or expectations, but to end up going #1 is mad and I really don’t take it for granted. Thank you for everyone connecting with the album. It’s been so wonderful spending so much time with all you lot over the past month. See you next year when we press play on some big pop stuff finally x.”  

Fans of the “Eyes Closed” singer congratulated the musician in the comments. One person said: “Autumn is so wonderful” whilst another person commented: “I love how it doesn’t matter what he makes under what label it is released, it always ends up No. 1 in the UK.” Pop duo Jedward, who appeared on the X Factor in 2009, said: “Boss rocking it on your own label.” 

Watch the music video for “Eyes Closed.”

“Autumn Variations” also topped the charts in Germany, Australia and the Netherlands.

The record has received a positive reception from critics. James Hall from The Telegraph rated the album four out of five stars and said: “Sheeran sounds like a supercharged David Gray. Grown-up. Energized. Forget Autumn, this feels like an album of bright new dawns.”  

As well as achieving his seventh number one album, Sheeran was also nominated at the annual MTV EMAs, which are set to air on 5 November. The pop-star also became the first British solo act to achieve 10 billion UK streams and was awarded with a Gold Brit Billion Award.

He said: “Each record before I’ve done, like, all the big going in and doing all these radio interviews, and going on the late-night shows, and doing, doing all this stuff. And this record, there’s not even a single for it. There’s not, there’s not a music video. I’m just putting it out”.  

The project is the first in line for Sheeran as an independent release, after the singer founded Gingerbread Man Records a few years ago. The superstar, who has more than 75 million monthly listeners on Spotify, explained that there is less pressure working independently.  

The “Bad Habits” singer said: “I wanna put out an independent record. And also, like, I’ve had 12, 13 years of the, being a pop star, and having the pressure of it has to sell this week one, you have to have this hit single, you have to have this. And part of me goes, ‘Why?’”

Listen to “Bad Habits”, below.

He continued: “Everything has to be the biggest and best every time, and then better the next time. I think that’s part of the independent thing, that takes away the pressure. There are no expectations because there’s no company. You have to live with it. You have to be like, ‘I don’t care what people think.”  

Autumn Variations is the seventh studio album released by the “Lego House” singer and comes after the smash success of his previous album Subtract, which was released earlier this year. Subtract, which has been certified Gold in the UK for selling over 100,000 copies, produced the hits “Eyes Closed” and “Boat.”

The hitmaker announced Autumn Variations this summer and explained the inspiration behind the record. He said on Instagram: “Last autumn, I found that my friends and I were going through so many life changes. After the heat of the summer, everything either calmed, settled, fell apart, came to a head or imploded.” 

He continued, “When I went through a difficult time at the start of last year, writing songs helped me understand my feelings and come to terms with what was going on, and when I learned about my friend’s different situations, I wrote songs, some from their perspectives, some from mine, to capture how they and I viewed the world at that time. There were highs of falling in love and new friendships among lows of heartbreak, depression, loneliness and confusion.” 

Fans of the singer can listen to the record now.  

The song peaked at number 1 in the UK and Ireland for 11 consecutive weeks, achieving a staying power in Ireland that had not been seen since 2018’s Drake hit, “God’s Plan“. The song also picked up some awards whilst it was making the rounds through the charts, winning Best International Song and Video at the LOS40 Music Awards, as well as Best Song in the MTV Europe Music Awards.

The song was apparently written last January in an attempt to surprise Sheeran’s audience, making “something that was totally different” from his usual material. It very nearly wasn’t going to be =’s lead single, but due to Covid restrictions being lifted, Sheeran scrapped what would have been a sombre acoustic song for something with a bit more optimism. The music video, directed by Dave Meyers and filmed in South East London, has around 270 million views on YouTube at this time and shows Sheeran playing a vampire-like character, inspired by hit US show Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

This isn’t the only reason Sheeran’s amazing success has had him in the news the past few weeks. His 2017 hit “Shape of You“ recently became the first Spotify song to pass 3 billion streams, more of which you can read about here. He’s also recently been given a total of four nominations at next year’s BRIT Awards. However, Sheeran has been keen on using his prestige to help others, raising over £50 grand at a charity raffle recently.