Bare Burchette 1 Marissa Bare Burchette Professor Groves English 1102 22 October 2013 The New Wave of Acoustic

Soul Let me sing and do my thing, Sheeran chides in his second single to hit music charts from his debut album +. The England born native seems to have been doing just that this past album cycle as he performs on the Olympic stage, headlines his own world tour, and opens for Taylor Swift herself in the United States. The sting of his lyrics to his exmanager may come across as a slight to the music industry in his song You Need Me Man, I Dont Need You in which he slyly states Im not you, now that would be disastrous. Call yourself a singer-writer your just bluffing. Names on the credits and you didnt write nothin, but to the raving teen boppers of his generation, the response in which they have received the album has been phenomenal. Older critics reprimand Sheerans love of rap/folk as he intertwines beat boxing, witty rhymes, and stripped down acoustics between songs. BBC even went as far as to say that +, fails to really gel the mans [Sheerans] love of folk and rap, and All Music Guide cleverly chided that his debuts failure to capitalize on his unique selling point means its likely to leave everyone else unplussed (OBrien). These negative reviews from popular sources prove that Sheeran loses the older demographic by refusing to become a more commercial folk singer and not taming down his red-haired, hoodie-sporting appearance. Still, songs like Kiss Me and his famous American hit A-Team, led with strumming acoustics and soft beats, have catapulted Sheeran to stardom by appealing to a wider

Bare Burchette 2 audience, yet the young songwriter seems to have no intention of keeping his songs within the same genre. Sheeran lists musical influences from Bob Dylan to Eminem to the Beatles, yet still incorporates pop tunes into his repertoire by writing music for bands such as One Direction and Cee Lo Green. His love for hip-hop and folk music derive from his diverse musical background in Suffolk, where his parents took him and his older brother to a variety of gigs in London. As a result of that upbringing, Sheeran likes to refer to his own sound as acoustic soul and when asked how he decides upon the subject matter of his songs, Sheeran states, My inspirations come from love, life and death, and viewing other people's situations I think it's good to remember that everything has been done before. That's why the different subject matters and love songs on the album are a bit odd and have some rapping things in it and popular culture references. I just wanted to kind of make it a little bit different (Kaplan). If Sheerans goal truly is to make an unusual debut, then he has definitely succeeded. Tracks such as This City and Grade 8 deny the album proper classification as beat boxing, bass slapping rhythms overtake our stereos, while Drunk and U.N.I. resurrect a more pop-based influence. Sheeran glides between lyrics as fluidly as he does genres, topics ranging from the loss of a loved one, beginning relationships, and scolding the music industry itself. From the somber lyrics of Autumn Leaves in which he sings youre miles away, and yesterday you were here with me, to the catchier tunes such as Lego House where he boldly states Im gonna paint you by numbers and color you in. If things go right, we can frame it and put you on our wall, Sheeran proves one thing: hes not writing to please anyone other than himself.

Bare Burchette 3 While the music industry has grown hushed in the shadow of Sheerans success, still a slight unease rests between him and his former ex-manager. Articles loomed about when Sheeran blatantly refused to change his style of music, looks, or persona for the sake of a record label, and instead went three more years as an independent artist. Fortunately for Sheeran, the gamble paid off. Now hes currently signed to Atlantic Records with the artistic freedom to promote his image however he wishes and has harbored more Brit Award nominations than Adele, Jessie J, and Coldplay combined. While the industry may be bitter about their earlier failed attempts to lead Sheeran to a predictable, toned-down career as a folk artist, there are no hard feelings as he rakes in millions for the music business. As the industry originally feared, some listeners may be off put by the albums jump in musical influence, style, and lyrics, but to others it comes as a refreshing surprise. Sheeran has accomplished an amazing feat by refusing to cater to mainstream media, and yet still achieve Grammy-nominating status. His unlikely stardom and humble persona make him more relatable to loyal fans who are sure to purchase his next album set to begin recording this winter. While his ex-manager may be cringing at the lost opportunity for revenue from Sheerans success, music lovers across the globe are thrilled to see where he takes his songwriting next.