Ed Sheeran shares the reason behind his 'unbreakable bond' with wife Cherry Seaborn
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Ed Sheeran has opened up about the tragic events that strengthened his 'unbreakable bond' with his wife Cherry Seaborn. Last year, the singer, 32, faced difficult times as his best friend Jamal Edwards passed away, and his wife, Cherry, 30, was diagnosed with a tumor while pregnant with their second child. Ed shared his thoughts on this at the debut of his new album 'Subtract' in London's Eventim Apollo on Monday.
According to The Sun, he said: "My dad said to me when I got married, 'You will not know what real love and marriage is until there’s death and real sickness.' There was real, real grief that happened in the family and real, real sickness that ended up in grief that they had to go through." He added that these tragic moments brought him and Cherry closer together, and once that happens, it creates an unbreakable bond. Although they had been married for five years and felt a "real, real closeness" to each other, it wasn't until last year that their bond was solidified. Ed admitted he should have experienced this feeling earlier, but he and Cherry are now capable of overcoming anything together.
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Jamal Edwards died of 'sudden heart attack' at his mom's London home, friends reveal
'Fear, depression and anxiety'
Ed opened up about the challenging year he had in 2022, as his wife Cherry was diagnosed with a tumor during her pregnancy with their second child, Jupiter, who was born in May of that year. Despite keeping the pregnancy a secret, the couple faced "fear, depression, and anxiety" due to Cherry's condition, which couldn't be treated until after she gave birth. Ed also mourned the loss of his best friend Jamal, who passed away in February 2022 after a cardiac arrest caused by a combination of cocaine and alcohol. The pop star struggled with his mental health as he coped with these difficult circumstances.
The inspiration behind his new album 'Subtract'
Ed shared the emotional inspiration behind his sixth studio album, 'Subtract', revealing it was shaped by personal tragedies he faced. In an Instagram post, he explained that he had been working on the album for a decade, striving to create the perfect acoustic record. However, at the beginning of 2022, a series of life-altering events changed his outlook on music and art.
He wrote, "Writing songs is my therapy. It helps me make sense of my feelings. I wrote without thought of what the songs would be, I just wrote whatever tumbled out. And in just over a week, I replaced a decade's worth of work with my deepest, darkest thoughts. I was spiralling through fear, depression, and anxiety. I felt like I was drowning, head below the surface, looking up but not being able to break through for air." He also explained that he didn't feel like he could release a body of work that didn't accurately represent where he was in life, saying, "As an artist, I didn't feel like I could credibly put a body of work into the world that didn't accurately represent where I am and how I need to express myself at this point in my life." Ed further revealed that the album was inspired by the heart-wrenching experience of his wife Cherry's tumor diagnosis and the loss of his close pal.