The complicated childhood, the ups and downs of life, the illness of his wife: Ed Sheeran without filters

“The highs, the lows, and everything in between.” This is how it is presented on Instagram Ed Sheeran** – The Sum of it All, **the four-part docu-series on the life of the British singer-songwriter che will be released May 3 on Disney+. Because in this documentary dedicated to the pop star there is everything: the difficulties faced on the road to stardom, fame and success, but also the pain felt for the death of a friend and the anguish when the singer’s wife was diagnosed cancer in pregnancy.

A mix of emotions, for the singer-songwriter was unable to hold back tears even on stage. Just like the trailer released on Instagram by Disney + shows. Trailer that begins with Ed Sheeran’s story of his childhood marked by a stutter and by those who pointed the finger at «that guy. She will never become a pop star, that’s impossible». Instead, those words are followed by images of what Ed Sheeran’s destiny was: to become, at just 32, one of the biggest stars in music. A star who has always tried to keep her private life away from the spotlight. At least until now. When he decided to tell everything for a very specific reason.

“Disney asked me to do a four-part documentary about the making of my next album, Subtract. Initially the documentary was just that, a work on the formation of an album. But as my life changed, the subject matter of the album changed, as did the documentary. It has become something completely different from what I thought. I wanted to give context to the album because it touches on very personal things that we all experience.” And it has become a personal story with which the artist has shared not only the beauty of music and his life as a star, but also the pains, especially those faced in the last period, such as the death of his friend Jamal Edwards. Music producer, he was the first to believe in Ed Sheeran’s music, the first to give him a chance. The two were bound by a deep friendship. And in the docu-series, the singer shares the pain for the disappearance of his friend, which occurred last February due to a cardiac arrest caused by alcohol and cocaine. He was only 31 years old.

The other great pain faced by the artist is linked to the great love of his life: his wife Cherry Seaborn. In the trailer of the docu-series the bond between the two is clearly visible. “Everything in my life has improved since Cherry arrived,” says the singer in a clip in which his wife’s baby bump is shown, which made him a dad twice. In fact, the couple has two children: Lyra, born two years ago, and Jupiter, who arrived 10 months ago. The second pregnancy was not easy: in Cherry, in fact, it was diagnosed a tumor that he would only cure once the pregnancy was completed. From here months of “anxiety, fear, depression” reveals the singer. Which, in the docu-series, shows all his fragility. In the trailer, in fact, he bursts into tears after learning of his friend’s death and, at the same time, of his wife’s health conditions. Not only. When anguish and fear take over, he can’t hold back the tears even on stage. «I’ve never seen him cry on stage» reveals Cherry Seaborn in the clip. She adds: “She hasn’t had time to process her thoughts of her and be at peace with them.”

Ed Sheeran: “The birth of my daughter is a miracle”

After years of trying, the British singer and his wife Cherry had thought about in vitro fertilization. Then a trip to Antarctica and the birth, nine months later, of little Lyra Antarctica: «We no longer hoped for it. It’s a blessing”

An intimate and personal docu-series, therefore, where the world-famous artist alternates between man and his fears and pains. But also with its joys and the desire to start over. The trailer, in fact, ends with the happiest moments lived by Ed Sheeran: while he celebrates his birthday, when he plays on stage or laughs with his friends. In full awareness that “life can be unpredictable”.