Ed Sheeran has a lot of mates, doesn’t he? For his latest album, No.6 Collaborations Project, he’s recruited a motley cast of collaborators, including Stormzy, Cardi B, Camila Cabello, Justin Bieber and Eminem, on an album of love songs (obviously) as well as cautionary tales about fame, and an Eighties rock anthem.
Sheeran’s usual normcore troubadour act involves twinking acoustic guitar while he croons “girl” — generating a net worth of £160 million in the process — but on No.6, we get dancehall, Latin, grime and hip hop. It’s slightly disorienting.
He’s not in Framlingham any more: “LA” is the first word spoken on the album, in a Chainsmokers-esque song with Khalid, called Beautiful People (beautiful as in shallow and venal). South of The Border, featuring Cabello and Cardi B, is a saucy, Latin-influenced song about a girl with caramel thighs (Ed!); Cabello carries it, though Cardi B’s hyperspeed hip-hop jars.
Sheeran is outshone by Stormzy on Take Me Back To London, though does, endearingly, address it (“I want to try new things/They just want me to sing”). The strongest track is Blow, with Bruno Mars: gnashing guitar rock, Aerosmith-like howls and R’n’B undercurrents. It’s silly, but comes off, not just because Mars’s growls of “hot damn” remind you of Uptown Funk. “Pull my trigger, let me blow your mind,” warbles a hook; you’ll be snarling it an hour later.
No.6 is incoherent and unpredictable without being especially radical. It sees Sheeran in maestro mode, experimenting with, if not quite commanding, different genres, but ultimately it’s not really about him: the stronger the collaborator the better the song. Take Me To London will rack up streams, while Feels (feat Young Thug and J Hus) won’t. It’s a Spotify album: all about a few tracks, the rest filler — but hey, top marks for getting “Ipswich” into a song featuring Eminem and 50 Cent.
