The affable everyman dabbles in grime, hip-hop, balladry and Latino love songs as he zooms down the middle of the road to world domination.
Sheeran has delivered a solid commercial showcase of the power of contemporary pop music brands.
Overall, ‘No 6 Collaborations Project’ is an eclectic mix of songs, some familiar, some forgotten after the first listen and some deeply impactful.
Its glassy, placid groove isn't a reflection of his blandness, but how Sheeran knows that this is the sound that defines global pop in 2019.
No.6 is defined in large part by Sheeran’s earnest attempts to incorporate hip hop styles and signifiers into his music ... but it’s too big a stretch for him to convincingly pull off.
A cynic would call this hotchpotch of genres and guests a laser-guided exercise in streaming monopoly, a credibility-by-osmosis playlist primed for summer dominance. And that person would be 100% correct.
Few releases have been as baldly transparent and destined for ubiquity as No.6, which has all the conspicuous mining of a Drake album, but very little of the finesse or cultural fluency.
Because he spent the whole album trying too hard, it falls flat, overall. This is an experiment that could have worked — but, ultimately, didn’t.
It would be easier to love the Sheeran who says he bites his nails and tells the truth, if it wasn’t part of so much humblebragging about how much money he’s made and how “gifted” he is.
For whatever reason, Sheeran opts to spend the entirety of No.6 Collaborations Project strenuously avoiding his strengths.
On this record, he’s taking a stab at, well, every genre. It doesn’t pay off, though, because this effort results in a sense of emptiness, an abyss of authenticity or real feeling.
His music before this was bland and boring, but it was his own sound and that’s respectable. This LP is Ed just throwing his artistic credibility out the window and pandering to the commercial audience.
I may express my Doomer mentality a bit too much on this site, but (major label) music is only gonna get worse from here.
EDIT: Now I see the error of my ways. No longer will Ed rein over actual artists. This was not the most exciting release of the week.
I really didn't want to review or even listen to this. Ed Sheeren is an artist that I virtually have no opinions on, due to the fact his blend of Folky stadium rock sounds more like it was aimed directly at my mother. And Jesus did this thing stink a mile away. This is some of the worst features i've seen all year. Justin? A Boogie wit da Hoodie? Eminem? Bruno ... read more
MFW Ed Sheeran say "Hey Dude" in the Yesterday Movie Trailer: 😂😂😂😂
Honestly I really wish this was good, like don't get me wrong. Most Ed Sheeran sucks, but like, Ed Sheeran ft. Young Thug. That's like an Aerosmith/Run-DMC tipe thing. But then I realized those bands probably cared about that song, and everyone on this album sells their features like it's an Audrey 2. I'm pretty sure I could go to Fiverr right now and buy a Travis Scott verse for less then it would cost ... read more
1 | Beautiful People 3:17 feat. Khalid | 58 |
2 | South of the Border 3:24 feat. Camila Cabello, Cardi B | 46 |
3 | Cross Me 3:26 feat. Chance the Rapper, PnB Rock | 53 |
4 | Take Me Back to London 3:09 feat. Stormzy | 49 |
5 | Best Part of Me 4:03 feat. Yebba | 51 |
6 | I Don't Care 3:39 with Justin Bieber | 39 |
7 | Antisocial 2:41 with Travis Scott | 56 |
8 | Remember The Name 3:27 | 47 |
9 | Feels 2:30 feat. Young Thug, J Hus | 34 |
10 | Put It All on Me 3:17 feat. Ella Mai | 45 |
11 | Nothing On You 3:20 feat. Paulo Londra, Dave | 36 |
12 | I Don’t Want Your Money 3:24 feat. H.E.R. | 46 |
13 | 1000 Nights 3:32 feat. Meek Mill, A Boogie wit da Hoodie | 37 |
14 | Way To Break My Heart 3:10 feat. Skrillex | 40 |
15 | BLOW 3:29 feat. Chris Stapleton, Bruno Mars | 57 |
#45 | / | Uproxx |