Ed Sheeran has announced his new album Subtract will be released on May 5.
The 32-year-old singer-songwriter said the 14-track record will explore the experiences of his pregnant wife being told her tumour was inoperable until after birth, and the death last year of his friend Jamal Edwards.
He said: “I was spiralling through fear, depression and anxiety.
“I felt like I was drowning, head below the surface, looking up but not being able to break through for air.
“As an artist I didn’t feel like I could credibly put a body of work into the world that didn’t accurately represent where I am and how I need to express myself at this point in my life. This album is purely that. It’s opening the trapdoor into my soul.
“For the first time I’m not trying to craft an album people will like, I’m merely putting something out that’s honest and true to where I am in my adult life.”
