Ed Sheeran shocked his fans during the final stop of his “Divide” tour in Ipswich, Suffolk, in England, with an announcement that he would be taking almost a two-year break from music. The recording superstar has been promoting his album Divide for the past two years, having played more than 250 live performances during that period of time.
“As you may or not know, I’ve been on the ‘Divide’ tour for over two years now and this is the last day of the whole thing,” he said, according to a report by The Sun . “There is something very bittersweet about it. I love that you guys are here and we are ending it in Ipswich.”
He then dropped a bombshell, “This is my last gig for probably 18 months.”
Sheeran then explained to the crowd in attendance that he has played amazing venues and performed to over 9 million people worldwide, reported The Sun . Not bad for a man who stands solo on stage with a guitar and sings for fans without assistance for much of his show night after night.
He then said, per The Sun, that he was thankful for everyone who had given him and his music a chance over the years. He then told the audience he would see them in a few years.
During his break, the singer and songwriter will likely enjoy some downtime with his wife Cherry Seaburn, whom he married in 2018. The couple met when they were children and attended school together, but only began dating seriously in 2015. The couple’s relationship blossomed after they traveled the world during a year where Sheeran took a hiatus from social media and focused on growing as a person as well as focusing his time on the couple’s relationship.
The Independent reported that the “Divide” tour officially became the “biggest” ever after grossing more than $775.6 million from 8.9 million tickets sold around the world. He has beaten similar tour grosses from the likes of Madonna, Coldplay, The Rolling Stones, and U2, reported NME .
The iconic singer and songwriter was discovered via his online performances and hit No. 1 on the iTunes chart before signing with a record label, reported Biography . Sheeran has since sold millions of records and won four Grammy Awards for hits like “Thinking Out Loud” (2014) and “Shape of You” (2017), noted the website, which details the personal and professional lives of the entertainment world’s most iconic performers.
Sheeran’s last album was No. 6 Collaborations Project where he featured songs with some of today’s hottest music performers, including Justin Bieber, Khalid, Chance the Rapper, Travis Scott, Eminem, Chris Stapleton, and Bruno Mars.