Ed Sheeran says he identifies culturally as Irish: ‘That’s what I grew up with’

Ed Sheeran has said he identifies culturally as Irish, despite being born and raised in Suffolk, England.

The singer-songwriter’s father, John, hails from Belfast, and Sheeran has often spoken of how his Irish heritage has influenced his music.

“I class my culture as Irish,” the “Galway Girl” singer told The Louis Theroux Podcast. “I think that’s what I grew up with. My dad’s family… he’s got seven brothers and sisters. We’d spend all of our holidays in Ireland.

“My first musical experiences were in Ireland, I grew up with trad music in the house. So I identify culturally as Irish, but I was obviously born and raised in Britain.”

Sheeran said he didn’t “overthink it” but felt his heritage was something that he was “really proud of and grew up and want to express”.

“I feel like just because I was born in Britain doesn’t necessarily mean that I have to be (British), there’s loads of people I know that are half this or quarter this,” he continued.

“I don’t think there [are] any rules to it. It should be how you feel and how you were raised and what you lean into.”

In the same interview, Sheeran disclosed that he had enlisted 24-hour security for himself and his family following an attempted break-in at his Suffolk home.

“In my industry, that’s normal,” he said. “That’s kind of like an underlying thing that no one really talks about, but that is kind of a part of being in the public eye.”

The musician, who is married to Cherry Seaborn, shared that there had been “a couple of weird things” over the years that had prompted him to hire additional security.

Addressing the issues that transpired for someone with his level of fame, he said he struggled most when it came to privacy for his wife and children.

“I’m very, very private about my children’s image… I can’t take them to zoos or parks or anything really without someone trying to film them,” he said. “There are times where the normal parts of life I kind of mourn for and wish I could push my kid on a swing in a public park and it not be weird, you know?”

Sheeran is currently preparing to release his eighth studio album, Play, in September, which will feature recent singles “Azizam” and “Old Phone”.