Ed Sheeran reveals Boat, the opening track to his album, encapsulates his feelings about depression
Ed Sheeran has revealed that the opening track of his forthcoming album depicts his feelings of depression as he sings, “The more I love, the less I feel.”
The 32-year-old global hitmaker, whose album – Pronounce Subtract, is out May 5, has dedicated Boat, the first track of his sixth body of work, to the struggles he’s waged over the past few years against grief, illness and addiction.
Accompanying the new issue, Ed has premiered a video, in which the star physically fights against the waves of the ocean, narrowly avoiding being submerged.
Father-of-two Ed, who has documented his overwhelming feelings of depression on his upcoming Disney+ series The Sum Of It All, sings “but the waves won’t break my boat,” symbolizing his hope and determination as he recovers from a series of major events that influenced his life.
Captured in artwork by Annie Leibovitz, Ed can be seen running free from the crashing waves after writing the song on the English coast amid the extreme elements of winter.
Ed Sheeran has revealed that the opening track of his forthcoming album depicts his feelings of depression as he sings “the more I love, the less I feel”
The global hitmaker has dedicated Boat, the first track of his sixth body of work, to his struggles over the past few years against grief, illness and addiction.
Captured in artwork by Annie Leibovitz, Ed can be seen running free from the crashing waves after writing the song on the English coast amid the extreme elements of winter
In Boat, Ed uses the backdrop of the ocean, which is vast and endless, to describe the all-consuming negative feelings he endured for various reasons, including when his wife Cherry Seaborn’s health deteriorated.
The songwriter revealed the grief he and Cherry experienced when she was diagnosed with a tumor while pregnant with the couple’s second daughter, meaning she couldn’t be treated until after their baby was born.
He also mourned the tragic death of his best friend Jamal Edwards, who passed away last year at the age of 31, with Ed saying “loss just took over my life.”
The pair became close after Jamal’s YouTube channel SBTV helped put Ed in the spotlight, and the entrepreneur gave the singer a place to sleep when he was 18 and had no place to live in London as an aspiring musician.
After initially thinking his Disney+ four-part documentary series would follow him into the studio and writing music, the challenges in Ed’s life saw the show turn into a therapeutic experience, where he bares his soul to his massive fan base.
And Ed says his upcoming album also reflects the more difficult moments in his life, admitting “every time something big happens I have a tendency to write a song about it.”
In an emotional interview for Rolling Stone magazine, Ed confessed that he feared the public would struggle to connect with him, saying he was torn by the themes of his album.
He said, “There’s a lot, like, ‘Why do people care if I feel this way or that way?’
In the first trailer for his upcoming Disney+ four-part documentary series, Ed burst into tears as he talked about the “loss” that was taking over his life
The songwriter revealed the grief he and wife Cherry Seaborn experienced when she was diagnosed with a tumor while pregnant with the couple’s second daughter.
After initially thinking his Disney+ series would follow him into writing music, the challenges in Ed’s life saw the show turn into a therapeutic experience, where he bares his soul to his fanbase (pictured in April on The Jonathan Ross Show)
After Jamal’s untimely death and the passing of another close friend, cricketer Shane Ward, Ed revealed in his darkest days that he “didn’t want to live anymore.”
He continued to the magazine, in quotes that now reflect Boat and the meaning behind the song, “And I’ve had that all my life… You’re drowning beneath the waves.” You’re just kind of into this thing. And you can’t escape it.’
In another of Boat’s lyrics, Ed sings “They say all scars heal, but I know I may not,” reflecting on the progress and no doubt the therapy he’s had to help with the process.
As part of his recovery, Ed revealed in recent weeks that he has given up drugs and alcohol after Jamal lost his life due to a heart rhythm disorder caused by cocaine use.
He vowed, “I would never touch anything again, because that’s how Jamal died.” And that’s just disrespectful to his memory to even come close.”