Ed Sheeran has hit back at critics who claim that he is stereotyping Irish culture in his latest album Divide.
The Shape of You singer just finished up a two day stint in Dublin’s 3Arena, where he wowed thousands of fans with live performances from his third studio album.
But his latest album, which features many tracks inspired by Ireland, has come under harsh criticism for it’s portrayal of Irish culture.
Never one to take criticisms lying down, Ed has insisted that his lyrics come directly from first hand experiences he’s had in Ireland.
“I’m telling you, every time I’ve been in Ireland I’ve ended up at a lock in where people sing and dance.” he told Dermot and Dave on Today FM.
“And every single time an Irish woman has out-drunk me. So I’m not stereotyping a culture. This is what I’ve experienced.”
As well as featuring a lot of lyrics inspired by Ireland, Divide also includes traditional Irish music, and Ed hopes this will make the genre more popular worldwide.
“What I would like to happen is that this becomes the norm now. Beoga have signed a major record deal so they will do [a record].” he said.
“Maybe this is the start of something. The way that Planxty and The Chieftains were massive in their time, I would like that to be a similar thing now.
“I grew up on trad music. I got to have tea with Christy Moore which was pretty cool. I have a great love for Ireland and the Irish culture.
“I came here four times a year for pretty much all my life and this is actually the biggest market for me in the world.”
