George Ezra & Friends

001. Ed Sheeran

'TALENT ONLY GETS YOU SO FAR'... Ed Sheeran invited me in to his home and we spoke for hours. We spoke about Ed’s introduction to the music industry and how talent only gets you so far because without a dedicated work ethic, nothing will work. Nearer the end of our conversation we also talk about what Ed wants to do with his time moving forward. Future projects and plans. It’s not every day that you get an insight in to the life of one of the most successful artists in the world. I hope you enjoy listening to us chat. This podcast was edited by Warren Borg. The animations and visuals are thanks to Oisin Griffin. A big thank you to Josh Sanger and the Closer Artists team for their help. Thanks to Ed Sheeran for having me. And of course, thank YOU for downloading and supporting this podcast.
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Had it not been for the introduction of podcasts into my life, my second album could well have been ready six months sooner. Who knows, maybe even seven. The world of podcasts has been an extremely welcome and comforting distraction from reality. Listening to interesting people talk to other interesting people about interesting things. New ideas, old ideas, thinkers and dreamers.

A lot of the shows I enjoy are comedians talking to other comedians, candid accounts of their experiences in the industry they work in. I find them inspiring and often relieving. To hear entertainers, talk so openly about the highs and the lows of performance feels like something that hasn’t really happened before and, personally, as a performer, it’s something that really helps me.

I began looking for musical equivalents: honest, long form conversations between two musicians, the unquestionable highs of creating and performing, alongside honesty regarding things they have struggled with along the way. At the time of digging, nothing jumped out at me. I sat on the idea for some time before finally plucking up the courage to try and do it myself and went out and purchased the gear necessary for me to travel and record at the drop of a hat.

So far it has been better than I could have ever imagined. I travel to my guests wherever they may be and it is just the two of us in the room. After the initial ten minutes of chat we both loosen up and start to share stories and experiences from our time on the road.

What started as a labour of love and somewhat of a passion project is shaping up to be one of the best and fulfilling projects I’ve ever been a part of. I hope you find it as interesting and fun to listen to, as it was to make.