Will ‘Subtract’ win Ed Sheeran that elusive Album of the Year Grammy?

Jaime Rodriguez
·4 min read
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Ed Sheeran is back this year with “Subtract,” which is said to be the last album from his mathematical album series. It debuted in the top two of the Billboard 200, and features a softer, more acoustic sound from Sheeran, similar to his first album, “Plus.” With “Subtract,” Sheeran will compete in the current Grammy cycle, after a couple of rocky years with the recording academy. However, “Subtract” could be Sheeran’s way back to the Grammy stage.

SEEEd Sheeran ‘Subtract’ reviews: Is new album a return to form for British singer-songwriter?

It seems like the Grammys have been moving away from Sheeran. In 2017 many expected him to clean up in the nominations for his highly successful album “Divide,” featuring the blockbuster hit “Shape of You.” Instead, Sheeran was snubbed in the general field and relegated to pop, where he won his only two nominations: Best Pop Vocal Album and Best Pop Solo Performance for “Shape.”

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For his subsequent collaborative album “No. 6 Collaborations Project,” Sheeran got only one nomination: Best Pop Vocal Album. And there’s a chance that Sheeran barely made the cut there, given that all his fellow nominees had additional bids elsewhere. Then came Sheeran’s most recent era, “Equals,” which only got one nomination across two eligibility years: Song of the Year for the hit “Bad Habits.” “Equals” therefore became Sheeran’s first album since “Plus” to not get nominated for Best Pop Vocal Album.

One might argue that the academy’s waning interest in Sheeran has to do with the music he’s making. While Sheeran has never been a critics’ darling, per se, “Divide,” “No. 6 Collaborations Project,” and “Equals” were his worst reviewed albums. In “Divide’s” case, the commercial success was probably too big to ignore in the pop field. But since “Equals” had less staying power on the charts, it’s no shocker that many voters probably didn’t care for it enough to nominate it, especially against veterans like ABBA or Coldplay. Likewise, the Grammys are known to love singer-songwriter music, so they might miss the “old” Sheeran, the one who focused more on strong lyricism and less on pop hits. That’s exactly why “Subtract” could be the album that gets him back in the Grammys’ good graces.

SEEEd Sheeran songs, ranked: What are his 21 greatest hits so far?

While I wouldn’t call “Subtract” acclaimed necessarily, its reception has been more solid than his past three albums. On Metacritic, it’s got a 7.1 out of 10 user score, a vast improvement over the respective 4.8, 4.7, and 5.7 scores of “Divide,” “No. 6,” and “Equals.” “Subtract” is also a more focused album from Sheeran, more sonically cohesive and focusing more on potent storytelling under some Aaron Dessner production. Voters could support this switch from Sheeran, especially those who might have been unhappy with his output in the past few years.

It also helps that the pop categories this year are rather weak so far, with only a couple of big names like Taylor Swift and Miley Cyrus being sure bets. As such, Sheeran could squeeze into one or two categories there, and his more singer-songwriter approach in contrast to the mainstream-pop-heavy sound of “Equals” could mean he gains support in the general field from voters in other genres like country or alternative.

It does seem like “Subtract” could put Sheeran back on track. While perhaps a win is not super likely this time around, his music is back to being as Grammy-baity as it can be, and as such, don’t be shocked if the awards welcome him back with open arms. And listen, there are still a few months left before the eligibility period ends on September 15, so who knows if “Subtract” could end up notching a big hit that launches its Grammy chances through the roof. One never knows these days.

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