Is Ed Sheeran the nicest guy in pop?

For all those who think they had it bad growing up, Ed Sheeran proves that things really do get better.

Despite a “weird” start, Ed Sheeran is now one of the world’s most successful recording artists

“I was a very, very weird child. Very weird child," admits Ed Sheeran. "And I had a port-wine stain birthmark on my face that I got lasered off when I was very young, and one day they forgot to put the anaesthetic on, and then ever since then I had a stutter. And I also had very, very big blue NHS glasses. And I lacked an ear drum on one side of my face—one side of my ear—so stuttering was actually the least of my problems when I went to school.”

“I have more value on my friends and family being OK.”

Edward Christopher Sheeran, MBE (Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire), is an English singer-songwriter, guitarist and record producer. He was born on the 17th of February 1991, in Halifax, West Yorkshire, and raised in Framlingham, Suffolk.

Ed turned to music to help him cope, overcoming his stammer by rapping along to Eminem. 

Sheeran is now one of the world’s most successful recording artists – and the nicest.  His generosity is second-to-none and he received an MBE for his services to charity. Ed gives away most of his money to family, friends and his local children’s hospital.  “I have more value on my friends and family being OK.”  he says.

He once took a break from music to work in his local charity shop, and donated his clothes to charity, giving £1,000,000 to turn an old, disused police station into youth centre in his hometown, Framlingham.

On a recent trip to West Africa for Comic Relief, the poverty he saw motivated Ed to make a difference immediately. He refused to leave abused young boys until safe accommodation could be found and a long-term plan formulated for their future. 

Nice-guy Sheeran appeared on Debrett’s 2017 list of the most influential people in the UK

Sheeran’s popularity abroad began in 2012. In the US, he made a guest appearance on Taylor Swift’s fourth studio album, Red. "The A Team" was nominated for Song of the Year at the 2013 #grammy Awards, where he performed the song with Elton John.

His second studio album, x, was released on 23 June 2014. It peaked at number one in the UK and the US. In 2015, x won the Brit Award for Album of the Year, and he received the Ivor Novello Award for Songwriter of the Year.

His single from x, "Thinking Out Loud", earned him two Grammy Awards at the 2016 ceremony: Song of the Year and Best Pop Solo Performance.

Sheeran’s third album,÷, was released in March 2017. The album debuted at number one in the UK, the US and other major markets. 

The first two singles from the album, "Shape of You" and "Castle on the Hill", were released in January 2017 and broke records in a number of countries, including the UK, Australia and Germany, by debuting in the top two positions of the charts.

He also became the first artist to have two songs debut in the US top 10 in the same week. Sheeran appeared on Debrett’s 2017 list of the most influential people in the UK.

Source: Wikipedia