The story behind Ed Sheeran’s new song “Eyes Closed” is absolutely tragic and something most of us can relate to.
Global (24 March 2023) – Ed Sheeran just released a beautiful, tragic song dealing with loss, grief and sadness.
The song – Eyes Closed – is the first single off “Subtract”, the upcoming fifth studio album by the English singer-songwriter. The album’s deluxe streaming version has 18 tracks, while the vinyl version has 23. Both are set to be released on the 5th of May, 2023.
“I had been working on Subtract for a decade, trying to sculpt the perfect acoustic album, writing and recording hundreds of songs with a clear vision of what I thought it should be. Then at the start of 2022, a series of events changed my life, my mental health, and ultimately the way I viewed music and art,” he shared in the album announcement.
He added that in just over a week, he replaced a decade’s worth of work with his deepest darkest thoughts.
“Within the space of a month, my pregnant wife got told she had a tumour, with no route to treatment until after the birth,” Sheeran continued. “My best friend Jamal, a brother to me, died suddenly and I found myself standing in court defending my integrity and career as a songwriter. I was spiralling through fear, depression and anxiety.”
“Eyes Closed” is a song dedicated to Jamal Edwards. The song explains how the singer dances with his eyes closed to keep seeing his friend.
“This song is about losing someone, feeling like every time you go out and you expect to just bump into them, and everything just reminds you of them and things you did together. You sorta have to take yourself out of reality sometimes to numb the pain of loss, but certain things just bring you right back into it.”
The music video depicts grief as a cuddly monster character that follows Sheeran around. Eventually, people around the singer reveal their “grief monsters”, too. A reminder that everyone around us is fighting the hardest battles that we may not know about.
Watch the video here:
Sheeran also released a “piano and strings” version:
You can also watch the “intro video” to his new album below:
Source: Ed Sheeran
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