Ed Sheeran at the Etihad Stadium

Reporter: Amelia Shaw

Saturday 26th May saw the third night superstar Ed Sheeran performed in Manchester at the Etihad. With two excellent support acts and a one and a half hour set from the main man himself, this gig was like no other.

First on stage was Jamie Lawson who performed for his home crowd with incredible energy and vigour, despite the stadium not yet being full. Signed to Gingerbread Records, Lawson was able to boast about his boss being Ed Sheeran before thanking the crowd and performing crowd pleasers such as ‘Can’t See Straight’ and, of course, number one hit ‘Wasn’t Expecting That’. Next up was pop-queen Anne Marie who was perfect for warming up the crowd and set the bar high for Ed’s performances with chart hits ‘FRIENDS’ and ‘Alarm’. These two acts were more equalling of Sheeran, not merely supports and made high ticket prices a little more reasonable.

If that wasn’t enough, perfectly on time despite performing in Swansea earlier that day, Ed graced the stage and was met by absolute frenzy. The first song performed was ‘Castle on the Hill’ before the setlist diverged into a mix of hits from Ed’s last three albums that showcased his cross-genre musical talents. With just a guitar and loop pedals for company in front of a 50,000 strong crowd he proved to those who criticise and call him ‘bland’ that he deserved to be on that stage. He may have come a long way from selling CDs from his rucksack, but he remains as genuine as ever. Regular stints talking to the crowd and encouraging singing as loud as possible in order for the audience to lose their voices ensured the crowd had a good time.

Crowd favourites ranged from soothing and romantic this ‘Dive’ and ‘Thinking Out Loud’ to club hit ‘Shape of You’ and the evening ended with an incredible arrangement of ‘You Need Me, I Don’t Need You’.

If the main show didn’t have enough charm, Ed won over those in the audience who were perhaps less excited to be there by wearing an ‘I heart MCR’ t-shirt for the encore. Aptly timed after the one year anniversary of the Manchester Arena terrorist attack, it was clear that every Mancunian there felt a pang of pride, especially as he’d said earlier in the night that Manchester was one of the best crowds in the world.

All in all the concert proved a real fan pleaser and the star’s energy and sheer love for his music was infectious; hopefully he’ll be back soon!

Author: Jude Gidney - Editor

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