Ed Sheeran in Chennai: A primary-time concertgoer’s dwell music expertise

Ed Sheeran and AR Rahman on stage in Chennai
| Picture Credit score: Mark Surridge

I’ve by no means been an enormous fan of live shows. I get the hype about dwell music, however to endure enormous crowds, getting pushed round, overpriced water and snacks, sweating, standing for hours, and the invariably soiled washrooms, I might relatively keep dwelling with my noise-cancelling headphones. Or so I believed till Ed Sheeran and AR Rahman took the stage to sing an unlikely  ‘Form of You’ and ‘Urvashi Urvashi’ duet. 

Ed Sheeran is on a six metropolis tour in India organised by BookMyShow Stay. The +–=÷× Tour (aka The Arithmetic Tour) is the fourth live performance tour by the English singer-songwriter, and Chennai was his third cease in India.

As a sceptical first-time concertgoer, I discovered Ed Sheeran the proper artist to begin with. He’s a candy, cheery, happy-go-lucky performer with a voice of gold, and I knew many of the songs on his setlist, even when not by coronary heart. So with my most comfy pair of sneakers, I breezed my means by way of safety test, obtained a boba tea for sugar rush, settled right down to first watch the solar go down (not over a fortress on the hill), after which noticed the opening act, singer Jonita Gandhi bust out some unbelievable strikes. 

Ed Sheeran on stage in Chennai
| Picture Credit score:
Mark Surridge

Warming up the gang, she carried out hit numbers like ‘What Jhumka’, ‘Chellama Chellama’ and ‘Arabic Kuthu’, and the gang danced and sang alongside. After a brief break, a brisk stroll across the enviornment, inspecting the meals stalls and planning my snacks, I stood entrance and centre within the midst of buzzing anticipation. 

Within the blink of a watch, Ed Sheeran ran on stage with guitar in hand, wearing a black t-shirt with the phrase CHENNAI printed on it.  This little gesture, which has turn into symbolic of his live shows in every metropolis he’s touring, felt a contact extra private right here. Chennai hardly has worldwide artistes coming in for giant live shows, and this appeared to suggest the beginning of one thing new. Is that this going to be our yr of a number of huge acts making a beeline for the town? 

The primary music of his setlist was ‘Citadel on the Hill’, and it set the tone for what was to comply with.  “That is type of a egocentric journey for me, as a result of I got here right here to be a vacationer and spent the final two days simply going round,” mentioned Ed on stage, who has been posting updates on his social media of getting a head therapeutic massage and singing his songs at AR Rahman’s music academy KM School of Music and Expertise. 

Ed Sheeran in Chennai
| Picture Credit score:
Mark Surridge

Whereas he was on stage rapping with out taking a breather, I realised I couldn’t sing alongside even when I needed to. Ed’s vocal vary and command all through his complete efficiency felt like an awe-inducing expertise. The loop pedal gave this one-man military backing vocals, devices, and a pedestal to wow the gang. “After I was youthful, I believed I ought to have an electrical guitar and be in a rock band, however it simply didn’t go well with me. So I obtained a loop pedal and that is how I’ve performed it for the final 20 years. Which means that the members of the band will likely be you guys,” he mentioned, making all the crowd do vocal workouts. 

I cried twice through the live performance. The primary was throughout ‘I See Hearth’ as a result of it felt just like the nerd in me was appeased, and the second was throughout ‘Happier’. Me and a thousand others sang alongside to ‘{Photograph}’, ‘Love Your self’, ‘Good’, and ‘Pondering Out Loud’. Starry-eyed {couples} throughout swayed, held arms and dueted with Ed on stage. 

Bang in the midst of his rendition of ‘Form of You’, Ed segued into ‘Urvashi Urvashi’ taking the viewers without warning and welcoming Chennai’s very personal music celebrity AR Rahman on stage. Rahman and Ed jammed to a remix of each these songs because the visibly delighted crowd sang alongside. “Ed Sheeran, welcome to Chennai,” mentioned Rahman earlier than he exited stage left. 

The live performance ended with an electrifying efficiency of ‘Dangerous Habits’, and I feel it’s protected to say that I’m a convert. A newly minted fan of the dwell music expertise. That is something however a foul behavior, and right here’s hoping for extra worldwide acts in Chennai this yr.