22-year-old British musician Edward Christopher "Ed" Sheeran was born on February 17, 1991 in Halifax, United Kingdom. Ed grew up in Framlingham, Suffolk, England. Ed Sheeran is a talented musician because of the experiences he had growing up. The musician's father, John, was an art curator and his mother, Imogen Lock, was an art curator and later started a jewelry manufacturing business. Imogen sang in a church choir, exposing Ed to singing. An uncle gave Ed a guitar when he was 10 years old. While he was first learning to play guitar, Ed's father took the singer to gigs across England. After the concerts, Ed returned home and took up music seriously. Soon after, Ed developed an acoustic folk pop rap sound. Musical influences for the sound came from the parents' record collection, including musicians such as the Beatles, Van Morrison and Joni Mitchell, as well as 1990s rap. At the age of 11, the young man met heartthrob Damien Rice backstage at a concert in Ireland. This experience opened the door to songwriting for him. Ed soon began selling CDs after advice from Damien Rice. An 8-track in the singer's bedroom served as a recording device and the first revenues went to Coca Cola and Twix. Ed continued to do music throughout high school and decided to drop out at the age of 16 to focus on music. Fame began to grow after exposure on YouTube, Twitter and Facebook. At the time, Ed was sleeping on couches, posting music online, and releasing homemade EPs (Extended Plays). Then he moved to London to perform on the club scene in 2008. Sheeran has played 312 concerts. In 2009, Ed went to Los Angeles to perform on the club scene and the singer signed with Asylum/Atlantic Records in 2010. In 2011, the musician made a major label debut with + and the following year closed ...... middle of paper ... Ed Sheeran is clearly talented.Works CitedSheeran, E. (2013). In Contemporary Musicians (Vol. 75). Detroit: gale. Retrieved from http://ic.galegroup.com/ic/bic1/ReferenceDetailsPage/ReferenceDetailsWindow?query= &prodId=BIC1&contentModules=&displayGroupName=Reference&limiter=&disableHi ghlighting=true&displayGroups=&sortBy=&search_within_results7CLNPZKN1639842 97&activityType=&documented=GALE %7 CK1608006003&source=Bookmark&u=tlc1 99025575&jsid=35bd5df920ecd9f148ae3124b33a85aaMurphy, C. (November 18, 2012). Review of Ed Sheeran's “+” album. TheCelebrityCafe.com. Retrieved from http://thecelebritycafe.com/reviews/2012/11/ed-sheeran-album-review Biggs, C. (February 15, 2013). [Interview] Ed Sheeran talks sex trafficking + His inspiration for “The A Team”. MTVact. Retrieved from http://act.mtv.com/posts/ed-sheeran-talks-sex-trafficking-inspiration-for-the-a-team/