Ed Sheeran Explains How Autumn Inspired His Latest Album | Conan O'Brien Needs A Friend

I was thinking about you today Ed. because I was thinking about the amazing. absolutely how you made yourself I was. thinking about it today which you know. there are artists out there who are very. talented who who are discovered but you. as you were talking about earlier you. got this guitar you're getting on the. tube you're you're going all over town. you really were a getting yourself known. on YouTube and when you got your first. hit it wasn't this you weren't this. produced act that had gone through the. machine which I think is fascinating. well I didn't make it on my looks.

I disagree thank you I disagree cuz I. feel like I'm looking in a mirror. uh man I've ever seen do you know when I. when I moved to London uh you know I. played guitar at school and I wrote. songs at school and I moved to London. and I quickly realized that I wasn't any. good and everyone that I was G I was 17. I was gigging with like 24 year olds. that had good songs they sung well they. played guitar but I realized that I. could outwork them I was like I'm not. better than you but I can do more shows.

I can I can go and I would book like. three shows on a Thursday night and get. on the tube and go and play three songs. three songs three songs and I was just. like if I play every night of the week. maybe two times a night maybe three. times a night and I'm just doing that. every day eventually I'll get really. good and that is what happened after a. while it just you you the practice does. make perfect where do you think that. work ethic came from I mean because I do. think that sometimes you don't even know. where it comes from you just have this. sense I think my dad my dad was really. tough on us when we were kids to work.

really hard and I was always confused. because I was like but I don't like. maths I don't like science and like why. would I work at something that I don't. want to do and as soon as I found music. I was like ah I'm going to do this every. day and it was the the detriment of like. my uh academic nness like I'm I wouldn't. say I'm a hugely smart person in. academics but as soon as I found music I. was like this is what I'm going to do um. and my dad always said like choose. someone that you admire and work harder. than them so like my hero when I was as. a kid was James Blunt and when I signed.

to Atlantic Records he was on Atlantic. Records and I said in his Peak year get. me his diary and we'll do double. everything that he did and that's. exactly what we did we just chose all. the things and then doubled it that's. Absol I mean and that first of all I was. talking to you backstage uh got past. your security and. uh how did he get in here um but I one. of the things that really uh blew me. away as you were you were talking to me.

about how still today you spend most of. your time in studio I mean you're with. your family obviously but then you're in. the studio a lot yeah I mean out I don't. have hobbies so my hobby is music I do. two gigs a weekend and I do five days in. studio every week I do 10 10 a.m. to. 5:00 p.m. every day and then that means. I can do morning routine with the kids. take them to Nursery go to Studio get. them back from Nursery put them to bed. it's like it's a nice routine to be in. do you find that there's um sometimes.

people talk about this great inspiration. they sit down and Elton John will say. that sometimes these songs came to him. and he sat down and he said the good. ones came very quickly totally sometimes. you have to write a lot of ones to. get the good ones though I find I find. that like I my thing I always say so we. I'm in every day in the studio and if I. get one song a month that's good I'm so. happy because that's that's an album in. a year that's 12 songs uh in a year so. we would make like today I've I've been. in we made three songs and like maybe.

one of them is good but by the end of. the week we'll have. like maybe one that's good but if I get. one this month I'm happy there's an old. saying that uh or an old concept that. when someone writes their great novel uh. and it's their amazing novel it means. they have nine ones in the drawer yeah. yeah totally and and so usually their. second novel isn't great because it was. one of the ones in the drawer that they. just handed to the publisher when they. were then a big deal that's what someone. at my record label said to me when I put.

out my first record and I was like I. think I could put out my second quite. quickly and he's like don't use the. offshoots of album one go back in and. make an album and it was great advice so. I I treat every album as if it's like my. debut going in to make the thing that. you're going to give to the world first. and then you work it as if it's your. debut as as as well this album's a. little bit different though because this. was not that it's very much something. that. I I can't I was saying it to you in the. dressing room it sort of happened by. accident it was very much you because.

you came out with uh an album quite. recently yeah and then you follow it up. with this uh album and I was listening. it to to today and I really love it and. you said yeah it actually it was sort of. forming while the other album was. forming which kind of blew my mind yeah. so I had this idea well I say I had this. idea my dad has my dad's full of great. ideas sometimes not so great but he his. his idea he said said to me like there's.

this composer called Elgar and Elgar did. this thing called Enigma Variations. which is 14 uh compositions about 14 of. his friends and he never told anyone who. who it was about and it was an enigma. and he said there's never been a modern. version of it wouldn't it be cool if you. did a variations record so I was like oh. that's fascinating actually and I was. talking to Aaron who I made the record. with and I was like we should do this. record base it around a season and it'll. be variations of the season with with. with my friend friends uh and whilst we. were making the record I had my best.

friend die my wife got diagnosed with a. tumor and then I went into a court case. and I wrote loads of songs about that in. the space of that month and then because. all of those songs were finished quite. quickly that album was done which has. became subtract but actually we were in. making variations so after all of that. we went back and finished it and it was. done but like songs like on if you know. my album sub track like the opening two. songs were meant to be on Autumn. variations they were meant to be the. first two of a and variations and it.

just came they the two Sonics are very. different one's quite a sad album and. one's quite a sort of hopeful joyous. fall album and you think of autumn. variations as being more hopeful I think. so there's a lot there's a lot more like. subtract is pretty much all just Doom. and Gloom and depression and you know. being sad about we were going through a. lot. of there wasn't much happy moments um. but yeah all very I mean it's about my. friends so it's my friends like falling. in love in September or like breaking up. in September or being depressed in.

September or no one turning up to their. birthday party cuz they're having a. sober September you know like it's. different it's it's about uh it's all. about September. well no cuz the thing is like I find it. I find it weird talking to Americans. about I mean you call it fall but like. England September's great everywhere but. England is in November like autumn. in England is not fun whereas you guys. it's all fall and it's apple juice and. everyone's having a great time it's not. here in Los Angeles it's oh yeah Los.

Angeles it's just a different kind of. fire zero Seas um it's uh yeah so I I. think you know it gets very you know. days are really short gets very dark. very cold very lonely and it's so that's. kind of what was the inspiration of the. record that after a month of uh no so. like three months of Summer where you're. having all the fun with all the friends. and you're going to festivals and you're. get out and you're in Pub Gardens like. it suddenly changes very quickly in in. England which is sort of the inspiration. of the record but it's all like it's.

weird the the changes that happened in. people's lives like I would have people. like having babies and suddenly their. life is completely shifted or getting. into a new relationship and it's. completely shifted and it's interesting. that after summer there is a switch in. people's heads that goes right back to. work back to school but it's it's a. different feeling well it's funny. because we're all on that schedule when. we're kids and then of course it changes. because you got to work through the. summer you got to work into the fall but. I still feel that way I still feel like. well time to get back at it even though.

it's the same in the two times that it. happens in the year uh September and and. January those are the two where you're. like okay so I was listening to autum. variations today and there was a there. was a song you wrote about England and. you talk about how we get a bad England. gets how much you love England but we. get a r bad reputation because of the. weather and what's so interesting to me. is that and you talk about how you. actually like that weather I I think. because of my genetic Boston but also. 100% Irish and everything I just love.

I love it when it's rainy and foggy and. everyone else is bitching I'm in I'm I. love it I'm just so happy I would choose. like genuinely I would choose the. English Coastline any time of the year. over any other Coastline in the world. even if it's like pissing it down with. rain and it's like I love swimming in. the English sea as well it's just cold. it's like just stupid no come. on no really the English sea I don't I. mean it it's it's got to be well. actually no you're in the Gulf Stream So. it's not freezing cold it's C it's cold. yeah try to give you an out there I shot.

I have a a music so my my whole last. record I made but that song in England I. wrote by the Sea and I made sub Tred by. the Sea so I was like oh I'm going to. shoot all the videos and one the. director had this idea of like you. should be in the sea and the wav should. just be like battering you down I was. like cool and she was like we could. shoot it in Los Angeles you know and I. was like no I'll do it in England and we. shot it in December and oh God I. definitely like I lost a couple of. inches for a couple of days know what I. mean I know exactly what you're talking. about.

Ed at least yours came. back they're still looking for. mine.