Ed Sheeran has released his highly-anticipated fifth studio album, Subtract, much to the delight of fans.
Over the last few months, Ed has been sharing snippets and teasers for the new album - which was released on May 5.
He revealed he worked on the album, filled with songs of grief and personal stumbles, for over a decade.
The Bad Habits singer had a difficult few years with the death of his close pal Jamal Edwards, the news of his wife's cancerous tumour as well as his copyright trials.
Every emotion of his being was stitched into the intricately-produced album and the star spent weeks explaining the meaning behind some of his tracks.
Boat
Ed revealed that Boat was the first song he wrote and finished for the album.
In his Subtract Sunday series, he opened up about the lyrics and said it was a song he "wrote about feeling like I was drowning under waves and not able to get out."
The raw and honest song demonstrates his strength and resolve while struggling with his mental health.
He said it's about: "Feeling at your lowest and wondering if you can get through it".
"I wrote and finished this song by the English seaside which I think is quite beautiful but it is quite a bleak and cold place in the winter," he continued. "I was looking down at the waves crashing and I thought that was a good metaphor for what was happening at the time."
Salt Water
Ed opened up about how the 'darkest nights' of his life inspired his new song, Salt Water.
"Salt Water was written about some of the darkest nights into mornings, and the ‘what ifs’ surrounding those thoughts," he captioned his post for his 43.1 million followers.
"It was the second song me and Aaron finished for Subtract and I really feel this and Boat framed what the record was early on."
In the video, he said: "Salt Water is quite a dark song, it's basically playing out what the final moments would be jumping into cold salt water and feeling at 3 to 4 degrees that you're free."
Eyes Closed
Heartbreaking song Eyes Closed is about "losing someone," the star explained.
He lost his pal Jamal in February 2022, a short time after his pregnant wife was told she needed surgery for a tumour that could not take place until after she had given birth to the couple’s second child.
"Feeling like every time you go out and you expect to just bump into them, and everything just reminds you of them and the things you did together," he explained.
"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 was inspired by the bedtime stories Ed reads his two young daughters, Lyra and Jupiter, and sees the singer on a night out and followed by a blue monster.
Ed is unable to shake it, wherever he goes, reminding him of the void that’s left in his life.
Life Goes On
In Life Goes On, he sings, “Tell me how my life goes on with you gone?”
The song hauntingly deals with grief and how he handles losing someone.
In his Disney + docuseries, The Sum Of It All, he discussed the death of Jamal and how he coped.
"I basically lived in his bedroom. His mum thought we were having a relationship," Ed explained.
"Jamal died in the morning. I was at his mum's house at midday. It's Caribbean culture, you go to the family home for nine days and nine nights. On the ninth night, they throw a big party.
"Grief instantly ends your youth. The funeral was like 30 people but he knows like 10,000 people."
Dusty
Ed's song, Dusty, was inspired by his morning routine with his adorable daughter Lyra.
He candidly discussed how he would juggle being a father after spending hours crying about the loss of his friend.
The Shape of You singer would sometimes cry himself to sleep and wake up with his little girl next to him.
Ed added that his daughter could tell that he was sad but was able to lift his spirits.
They had a routine of listening to music on a record player and eat breakfast at the same time.
One morning the father-daughter duo chose to listen to Dusty Springfield's Dusty in Memphis, which inspired the song.
End Of Youth
End Of Youth came about recently about how life changes when you go through grief.
He talked to his parents and friends about loss and learned a lot about the things they never previously discussed out loud.
Grief 'ended his youth' after experiencing loss, depression, anxiety and more.
He said for his Subtract Sundays: "I never really felt like an adult until the last few years. When heavy life stuff just starts happening. And it really hit me that this obviously happens to everyone, it doesn’t matter what age you are.
"Friends of mine lost parents when they were teenagers, and they became adults instantly from the pure real life nature of grief.
"And I feel like grief, depression, anxiety, just ends youth and playfulness, because its so real, and so final, so all encompassing. This is the ending of our youth when pain starts taking over."
Curtains
In Curtains, Ed discusses what it's like in those moments when you want to shut the world out.
On his Instagram page, he explained to fans: "The song is basically about... We all get in places where we just want to shut the world out, close the door, draw the curtains, and not speak to anyone when we're feeling certain ways.
"We all have people in our lives that love us and try to get us out, pull the curtains and let the sunshine in."
Sycamore
Sycamore was one of the last songs he wrote for the album and focused on his wife's tumour.
"This song is about finding out the worst possible news you can about the one you love," he said on Instagram.
"At this moment, it was just before we drove to the doctor for a check-up to find out what the next steps were after finding out the news."
He sings: "Right now in the waiting room/ emotions running wild/ Worried 'bout my lover and I'm worried 'bout a child."
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