Today on Nova’s Fitzy & Wippa, we chat with Ed Sheeran off the back of his Mathematics tour announcement. He talks about his plans for the tour including a stage that has been built over the last three years, getting high with The Game in Compton and his love of offensive gifts. Plus the team brainstorm special ideas for when he’s in Australia – a Nova Red Room in Darwin maybe?
ED SHEERAN TALKS ABOUT GETTING HIGH IN COMPTON AND HIS LOVE FOR OFFENSIVE GIFTS
ED SHEERAN I don’t know why my name is that like I literally only use Zoom for like radio interviews and it just always is Ted Shizzle.
FITZY Did Snoop Dog give you that name?
ED No I haven’t met Snoop Dog. I feel like it’s quite dangerous because you’d be like, when in Rome. You’d have to. I remember I was in the studio once in, like 2013. I was doing some records with The Game and he took me to Compton. And we were in studio and we probably made like 13, 14 songs. And towards the end of the session his boys come in and they’re sort of like, it starts being a bit of a party. You know what? I’m in Compton. I’m with Game. I took a tiny, tiny, tiny puff on something and I was out, I had to go home. I don’t really do that at all. This is like this is 2013. And it was when in Rome.
FITZY Can we tell you a story? We had an interview with Snoop Dogg for 20 minutes, right. Two hours later, we’re still waiting. He doesn’t rock out. Right? And then all of a sudden he walked out of this hotel room and there was smoke everywhere. And all his posse came out. And we got told that the interview with Snoop is off and we were shattered because my mom baked him some cookies Ed right these special cookies. And so we didn’t get it. We went back to the hotel. Remember when and then we got we got a phone call half an hour later. And it was like Snoop Dogg wants to do an interview with you on the phone. And he got on the phone and Ed he left this. My mom’s name is Claire Fitzgerald. And he left this message for my Mum…
ED Arguably probably better than the interview.
FITZY This is so true. Ed, while we’ve got you. Look, we’re just looking at our schedule at the moment. And we’re just doing interviews for 2023. And we’ve got a bit of a break in Feb and March next year. Any chance you come to Australia and have a chat to us?
ED Yeah you know, I was meant to be there now to announce this tour. I was meant to fly over that a few unavoidable situations in England, but yeah, I mean, I can’t bloody wait. Last time, the last time I was there for was for Michael’s Memorial. Yes. And it just like, after being in England so long. And then coming as my daughter my daughter’s first flight. It was the first time in the sea. It was like you know, like I just know, I just love Australia. So I’m very, very interested.
WIPPA Because you know, what we gotta do too Ed, because last time when you launch to it, it was 2018 we were there. 15 over there in Perth fought with you. And Michael was there and we had the big ice statue if you remember because you sold over 1 million tickets like it was
ED Do you not find it strange that he ordered an ice statue in like 80 degree weather.
FITZY it was boiling hot. It melted very quickly. But that was Michael Gudinski. That was also remember we spoke about this last time we got you the beer mats for your pub that you have at home.
ED And the beer, I’ve still got the beer.
FITZY and the cocktail shaker. Remember with Russell Crowe’s…
ED I found that the other day because I was I basically cleaned out my pub, because you know, when you just have like alcohol that ends up on the shelf and you’re like, No one it’s like, I know that it’s like a mix of like some really obscure cocktails. Everything and I found that cocktail shaker on the shelf with that stuff. So I’ve got that again.
FITZY So when you come back next year, we know you’re a humble man but we like to get you a gift every time you come. We were going through a couple of ideas do you need like a maybe, you know those breathalyzer kits that are up on the wall that people can use you grab a straw on the way out. Would you like a last drinks bill that you could have maybe in the pub to get everyone out?
ED I have a last drinks bell and I feel like the breathalyzer thing. I wouldn’t want to waste that much like single use plastic. We could do an old school one that just never gets washed. grubby, like a weekend. I’m into just stuff that’s offensive. So if you think of something fancy, like, I’ve got a massive, I’ve got a massive painting in my pub that just says pipe down… I probably need to change at some point.
ED SHEERAN TALKS ABOUT HIS PLANS FOR THE UPCOMING TOUR AND HE AGREES TO DO ANOTHER NOVA RED ROOM
WIPPA Just before the sun we were talking about what we could get in for is bar and Fitzy. You came up with another idea.
FITZY Do you have a karaoke machine in the bar that other people can get up and do a bit about we can because we could get one of those TVs for you? You don’t want to perform Do you want to break?
ED I don’t know how I feel about karaoke because I feel like karaoke needs to be done by people who, like it’s not fun. If you see someone that just sings well, like it’s the thing about karaoke is the performance. Yeah, it’s not about about it’s about getting into it. So I’ve never really I usually do karaoke when I’m so blitzed. I can’t sing in tune anyway. But you can find you can find videos of me in Japan, saying like, Oh, man, it’s so like, as a musician, like I find it very like when you sing in tune. It’s very difficult to sing purposefully out of tune. When I’m when I’m off my chops…
ED I think I was singing Baby One More Time. My mate I was at karaoke with him once and he chose Roxanne. And as soon as it comes in, that’s a bit a bit too high. Also, I have a friend we were in Korea, and he chose ignition, our Kelly, and then didn’t realize that there’s a remix to ignition. And there’s a six minute song called ignition that no one’s heard. Age in front of all, like, the whole Korean bar… People are just like I don’t even know.
WIPPA tie that back into the tour Ed, because each time you come out, you’re obviously putting on a bigger show. If you’ve got any idea of what this tool is going to look like and how big the stage and what the theater around it will be.
ED actually, it’s a conversation that Michael planted in my head in 20,019, when when we were doing it, he was like you gap to play the MC T and doing it. Yeah. And I from there. I was like, I don’t know if I can do it in the round show. Because it’s so my show. So focused on me being a one, man. Yes. The you have to kind of be all sides of the stage at once. So I was like, how would I do that? So we’ve basically built this stage over the last three years. I got the I got the final plans for it the last day of the divide tour, and they’ve been building for three years. And it’s like, it’s a big financial risk. I hope that there’s not another pandemic, touch wood.
FITZY Well, how’s this one? How’s this one? Because we know the history that you’ve had with Nova, we’ve got a great relationship with us and you’ve done some amazing red rooms. You did Bondi, you’ve done the Opera House? Yeah, I mean, can we put our heads together? Can we have a brainstorming session? Is there. I don’t know. There’s something else in Australia that we need to focus on and maybe try to get you back with another red room?
ED I have never been to Tasmania. So let’s do actually no, I have never played a show in Tasmania. I’ve never been to Darwin. I think I mean, maybe in the early stages, I went to Tasmania as a tourist. I’ve never played a show. But Darwin I’ve never been to. So either of those.
FITZY This is the thing we you know, in Australia, we’re just sort of starting to open up now with the music industry. But you’ve been touring since what November? You know, October last year? How are your shows? No,
ED not really. I did. I did like a few like radios. I did like a few radio shows, you know, like the monkey artists Christmas shows. And I think I did one gig in New York. Webster Hall. That was amazing. And I did one gig in London at Hackney Church, which was amazing. But that that was kind of it. I basically I’ve got, I’ve got warm up shows for starting next week. So I’m playing like electric ballroom and then I’m going down to Brighton to play a show, then the Royal Albert Hall and blah, blah, blah. So I’m basically getting back into the swing of things because I often find on tour. The first three dates is kind of like a It’s not it’s not great user voice and I by the time the first gig happens, I want I want it to be like a well oiled machine again.
WIPPA Maybe it’s a Bondi Beach show fits. Maybe it’s a special one.
FITZY We already did Icebergs.
WIPPA What if you’re outdoors? Well, let’s think about it. All right. We’re gonna work on this Ed, we’re so pumped for the idea of you coming back down under.
ED Thank you. And you just want to avoid being in Darwin don’t you?
WIPPA I’m happy to do Darwin, we can do Darwin. I would love, we’ll go barramundi fishing with a guitar.
ED I’ll leave you guys to think about it but we’ll do it.
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