It was the sixth of October. I had been waiting for this day for almost two months. I was in Seattle and standing in a ridiculously long line, but I was ready. I was ready for Ed Sheeran. Why Seattle? Well, five days earlier was my best friend Brittany’s birthday and a trip to lovely Seattle was her present with Ed Sheeran as a bonus.
She had called me when I was on the choir trip to Mo Ranch. I saw she had left me a voicemail message, but didn’t think it anything of it; probably a question about our upcoming bible study. I plugged in my headphones on the noisy bus to get a clear listen. I heard Brit’s familiar voice, “Hey, you wanna go to Seattle in October to see Ed Sheeran?” I screamed with excitement. Was this a sick joke? I called her and checked it out. This wasn’t a joke – all I needed to do was talk to my parents. My friends around me on the crowded bus glared at me and said, “You’re so lucky!” “I hate you!” I couldn’t contain myself.
Two months later, Brit, her mom and I stood in a long line in anticipation of finally seeing the flame-haired British singer-songwriter in the flesh.
This was to be the first of two times I would see Ed. On Jan. 19 myself and five friends will be seeing Ed in Austin at the Stubb’s Pavillion.
And in that moment I was in the tiny venue, Showbox SoDo. The room was so tiny I wondered how we’d all fit. As we walked up, the first opening act, Belgian Selah Sue, was singing with a graceful voice that is completely unique to anything I’ve ever heard. She had been playing for awhile so we only saw about two songs. She then left and everyone got excited because they thought Ed was coming on. They were wrong. Mike Rosenberg, more commonly known as Passenger, came on and with his soulful voice, gave an entertaining performance with laughs and joyful sing-alongs.
After about eight songs, it was time for Ed to come on. He kicked off a very intimate concert with one of my personal favorite songs, “Give Me Love.” I will admit there were some tears as I watched Ed walk across stage serenading the crowd with a voice to melt the coldest of hearts.
As the concert rolled on, Ed made sure to involve the crowd in almost every song, asking for everyone to harmonize.
Beginning at the third song, a girl passed out and the people around her made sure to get Ed’s attention. He was so sweet that he made the sweetest of honey seem bitter. He asked the crowd to part and security to take care of her. Swoon.
I have to say I was thoroughly impressed with Ed’s genuity. When he played “Kiss Me,” he told the story behind it, and I nearly died from the adorableness that is Ed Sheeran.
He explained that his godmother and godfather had both had failed marriages in the past and they finally realized they wanted to be together, so they asked him to perform at their wedding. Ed gave them a list of his songs, and they asked him to write a song because they wanted something more personal. A week or two later, boom, “Kiss Me” came about.
All in all, I have to say after this preview of what’s coming to Austin in January, I can’t wait. Ed, you are the best and I loved your performance. I can’t wait to see it again.
