Ed Sheeran Plays New ‘x’ Songs, Shares Stories at iHeartRadio Theater LA Album Release Party

Rae Votta
·2 min read
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How did a Passover dinner lead to Ed Sheeran in the studio with Pharrell, Diplo and Skrillex?

Ed Sheeran Announces ‘x’ Album Release Party, IHeartRadio Festival Performance

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When Sheeran took to the stage at the iHeartRadio Theater Los Angeles on June 17 for a Pepsi-sponsored release party for his new album, “x,” the singer not only showcased new music but also quipped anecdotes to host Mario Lopez ranging from the Jewish holiday gathering that resulted in a “very sexual” song collab to the time Gavin DeGraw drove him to get stitches on their first meeting.

Sheeran also addressed Lopez’s query about whether the ex-girlfriend he wrote the song “Don’t” about has given him any feedback.

“I think it’s all good,” Sheeran told Lopez before jokingly checking his texts to say she’d just wrote to let him to know Lopez looked cute.

Sheeran continued his flirtatious nature with the audience, strumming through hits like “Lego House” and mashing up “Don’t” with Chris Brown’s “Loyal.”

“I’m generally a happy person, my songs just tend to be a bit down,” he mused while introducing new track “Thinking Out Loud.”

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Then, armed only with his guitars and looping pedal, Sheeran held the crowd in the palm of his hand, leaving them singing the outro to “Sing,” which sits at No. 16 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Fans can watch the hour-long stream on iHeartRadio.com beginning June 23, while a 30-minute version of the release party will be broadcast on Clear Channel’s Contemporary Hit Radio and Hot AC stations.

Sheeran continues his partnership with iHeartRadio as the first performer confirmed for the fourth annual IHeartRadio Music Festival in Las Vegas on Sept. 19-20.

Here’s the setlist:

“You Need Me”
“Thinking out Loud”
“Grade 8”
“One”
“Give Me Love”
“Lego House”
“Don’t” mashed up with Chris Brown’s “Loyal”
“I See Fire”
“The A Team”
“Sing”

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