Most of you probably know by now that Ed Sheeran relies on his trusty loop station to record and play back music in real time that adds layers to his live performances.
His largely solo act in Dubai was no different, with the singer-songwriter feverishly tapping away on his pedals as he charmed his fans on a night that saw thousands of fans brave traffic and entry queues to catch Sheeran live on stage.
Dressed in his trademark plaid shirt and a Hoax T-shirt, Sheeran’s boyish appeal was evident through his 100-minute set as the prompt artist (he came on only eight minutes after the 10pm scheduled start) joked with fans about Dubai’s infamous traffic, even as he sympathised with dads and boyfriends present who were “probably coerced” into attending the concert at the Autism Rocks Arena.
Sheeran kicked off his performance with Castle On The Hill, requesting fans to lose their voice with him as the award-winning singer put on a sincere final act before the 100-date tour came to a close last night. While the jokes didn’t let up, the singer also took a moment to speak about his accident last month, which had thrown the Dubai performance into question after Sheeran was forced to take downtime while recovering from several fractures.
However, not one to brood, with that simple message Sheeran and his faithful guitars took over, taking fans through musical highs with performances of fan favourites, The A Team, Bloodstream, Happier and Galway Girl in the first half of the concert.
A performer who clearly knew how to keep his fans engaged, Sheeran kept the thrills coming, waiting for the second half of his show to really dig into his catalogue to bring out the biggest hits of his career. Of special mention was his performance of Photograph, where Sheeran held fans mesmerised with a near 90-second guitar riff that drew audible gasps from many in the crowd.
With fans now eager for more, Sheeran spun into a rendition of Thinking Out Loud, just as the skies opened up and the rain came down in a brief drizzle. Up-dos and posh frocks were no competition as the 26-year-old weaved magic, bringing a former carpenter turned musician, PJ Smith, briefly onto the stage to combine his talent with Sheeran’s for a brief spell.
It truly was a night of pure, unadulterated music as on-stage gimmicks and high-voltage acts were given a miss for a simple boy from Suffolk who touched a chord with his feel-good melodies.
Sheeran ended his set with an enthusiastic performance of Sing, before returning for an adrenaline-charged encore act with Shape of You and You Need Me, I Don’t Need You.
The night was soon over, but the die had been cast: whether the dads and the boyfriends agreed or not, Sheeran had earned several new fans in just one stroke.
