Autumn Variations is the seventh studio album by English singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran. It was released on 29 September 2023 through his record label, Gingerbread Man Records. All tracks on the album were solely produced by Aaron Dessner, except the track "Spring", which was produced by Dessner together with his twin brother Bryce. The album also serves as Sheeran's second project of 2023, following the May release of his previous album -, and is the first studio album for which he owns the copyright.
Background
On 24 August 2023, Sheeran announced the album on social media, in which he said: "Last autumn, I found that my friends and I were going through so many life changes. After the heat of the summer, everything either calmed, settled, fell apart, came to a head or imploded". He also added: "My dad and brother told me about a composer called Elgar, who composed Enigma Variations, where each of the 14 compositions were about a different one of his friends. This is what inspired me to make this album."
The album was his first album released independently on his own label, Gingerbread Man Records. Sheeran said that there would be no singles or videos released to promote the album. Although one single, "American Town", was sent to Italian contemporary hit radio the same day as the album was released.Autumn Variations is the seventh studio album by English singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran. It was released on 29 September 2023 through his record label, Gingerbread Man Records. All tracks on the album were solely produced by Aaron Dessner, except the track "Spring", which was produced by Dessner together with his twin brother Bryce. The album also serves as Sheeran's second project of 2023, following the May release of his previous album -, and is the first studio album for which he owns the copyright.
Background
On 24 August 2023, Sheeran announced the album on social media, in which he said: "Last autumn, I found that my friends and I were going through so many life changes. After the heat of the summer, everything either calmed, settled, fell apart, came to a head or imploded". He also added: "My dad and brother told me about a composer called Elgar, who composed Enigma Variations, where each of the 14 compositions were about a different one of his friends. This is what inspired me to make this album."
The album was his first album released independently on his own label, Gingerbread Man Records. Sheeran said that there would be no singles or videos released to promote the album. Although one single, "American Town", was sent to Italian contemporary hit radio the same day as the album was released.false2023-09-29 21:18:48Autumn Variations1020232023-09-292023-09-2949Pop1116112417876ddc801f1-7310-4b20-92d4-fa987875e12fb8a7c51f-362c-4dcb-a259-bc6e0095f0a6ab71e378-badc-4b7f-a061-bae3768848a4/config/metadata/library/e7/e7ab82f95a8e9dfc6a08e06bc2ce2380/folder.jpgEd SheeranAlbumArtist/config/metadata/People/E/Ed Sheeran/folder.jpgEd SheeranArtist/config/metadata/People/E/Ed Sheeran/folder.jpgEd SheeranEd SheeranEdward Christopher Sheeran ( SHEER-ən; born 17 February 1991) is an English singer-songwriter. Born in Halifax, West Yorkshire, and raised in Framlingham, Suffolk, he began writing songs around the age of eleven. In early 2011, Sheeran independently released the extended play No. 5 Collaborations Project. He signed with Asylum Records the same year.
Sheeran's debut album, + ("Plus"), was released in September 2011 and topped the UK Albums Chart. It contained his first hit single "The A Team". In 2012, Sheeran won the Brit Awards for Best British Male Solo Artist and British Breakthrough Act. Sheeran's second studio album, × ("Multiply"), topped charts around the world upon its release in June 2014. It was named the second-best-selling album worldwide of 2015. In the same year, × won Album of the Year at the 2015 Brit Awards, and he received the Ivor Novello Award for Songwriter of the Year from the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors. A single from ×, "Thinking Out Loud", earned him the 2016 Grammy Awards for Song of the Year and Best Pop Solo Performance.
Sheeran's third album, ÷ ("Divide"), was released in March 2017, and was the best-selling album worldwide of 2017. The first two singles from the album, "Shape of You" and "Castle on the Hill", broke records in a number of countries by debuting in the top two positions of the charts. He also became the first artist to have two songs debut in the US top 10 in the same week. By March 2017, Sheeran had accumulated ten top-10 singles from ÷ on the UK Singles Chart, breaking the record for most top-10 UK singles from one album. His fourth single from ÷, "Perfect", reached number one in the US, Australia, and the UK, where it became the Christmas number one in 2017. The world's best-selling artist of 2017, he was named the Global Recording Artist of the Year. Released in 2019, his fourth overall and first collaborative album, No.6 Collaborations Project, debuted at number one in most major markets, and spawned three UK number one singles, "I Don't Care", "Beautiful People", and "Take Me Back to London". His fifth studio album, = ("Equals"), topped the charts in most major markets in 2021. His sixth album, - ("Subtract"), was released on 5 May 2023, while his seventh album, Autumn Variations, was released on 29 September 2023 under his own record label, Gingerbread Man Records.
Sheeran has sold more than 150 million records worldwide, making him one of the world's best-selling music artists. He has 101 million RIAA-certified units in the US, and two of his albums are in the list of the best-selling albums in UK chart history. In December 2019, the Official Charts Company named him artist of the decade, with the most combined success in the UK album and singles charts in the 2010s. As of April 2022, he is the most followed artist on Spotify. Beginning in March 2017, his ÷ Tour became the highest-grossing of all time in August 2019. An alumnus of the National Youth Theatre in London, Sheeran's acting roles include appearing in the 2019 film Yesterday, playing himself.