Ed Sheeran had almost ditched his signature ginger locks in his early years in the music industry.
Named as one of the world’s wealthiest singers, with a net worth of $160 million, the U.K. born musician gained his popularity in 2011 with his breakthrough single “The A Team” in his first studio album +.
Since then, there is no stopping the singer-songwriter from producing chart-topping songs that earned him worldwide recognition and multiple awards, including his first two major awards for Best British Male Solo Artist and British Breakthrough Act in the 2012 Brit Award.
This was followed by four Grammy Awards, including Best Pop Vocal Album, two Best Pop Solo Performance, and Song of the Year for his 2014 track “Thinking Out Loud.”
Ed Sheeran almost change his ginger hair to become famous
However, just like other artists, the British singer experienced setbacks along the way before making it to Hollywood.
In an interview with his longtime manager, Stuart Camp, he revealed to the podcast “Straight Up,” that an unnamed firm advised Ed Sheeran that he could not make it in the industry due to his ginger hair.
As a result, they advised the 29-year-old multi-awarded singer to alter his appearance to fit in with the crowd.
“The other management actually resigned from him because they said he wasn’t going anywhere. He had to drop the looping pedal, dye his hair black, and give up the rapping,” he mentioned.
Jaime Foxx contribution to Ed Sheeran’s road to fame
Although he did not name the said agency, actor and record producer Jaime Foxx previously mentioned in his interview with “The Graham Norton Show” back in 2017 that he backed the now-most successful male recording artist to launch his career.
Moreover, he also mentioned that he let him the “Beautiful People” singer crash on his couch “for six weeks before he was famous.”
The “White House Down” star also recalled how Sheeran went to his then radio show in Los Angeles, wanting to try out and show his music.
In addition, Foxx also detailed his first open mic donning his ukulele and how he received a standing ovation from the crowd.
“He pops out, with red hair and a ukulele. It was just like a movie. I said, ‘Well, let’s see what the kid has.’ And he went out there on that ukulele — got a standing ovation in 12 minutes. And the rest was history.”
Through his dedication and passion for music, Ed Sheeran proved to be a hit-making musician earning numerous awards and chart-topping collations with some of the brightest stars including Eminem, Taylor Swift, and Justin Beiber.
Featured image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.