The world is full of weird duos that somehow work together.
There’s Shrek and Donkey who manage to rescue Princess Fiona. There’s Bud Abbott and Lou Costello who, rumor has it, are still arguing about who’s on first. You even have The Odd Couple themselves, Felix and Oscar. Here’s another one for you: Jamie Foxx and Ed Sheeran.
In 2017, the former Jamie Foxx Show host revealed that he knew the now highly successful British singer before he was big, and even gave him shelter in LA when Ed had nowhere to stay.
“Ed Sheeran slept on my couch for six weeks, before he was famous,” Foxx said on The Graham Norton Show in 2017.
Foxx went on to tell the story of how he met Sheeran in 2010 while hosting his satellite radio show. Sheeran approached him and asked to give his sound a listen, to which Foxx agreed.
After inviting him to his house in LA and hearing him play his music, Foxx recalled saying, “You’re incredible.”
“I said, ‘Listen, I know you don’t have anywhere to go, just chill here.’ I was giving him food,” Jamie continued.
Eventually, he wanted to see what Ed was really made of and decided to bring him to a weekly show that Jamie frequented and hosted in downtown LA. The show was predominantly black artists, including rappers, guitarists, and other musicians, all of which Jamie recalls being very black-oriented in their lyrics and performances.
Obviously, Ed didn’t quite fit the criteria. But that wasn’t really of any concern for Foxx because he was confident in Sheeran’s talents and that neither his, nor the audience’s race would be a factor in how people felt about his musical talents.
“And so, all of the sudden, I say, ‘Ladies and gentlemen: Ed Sheeran.’ He pops out,” Foxx remembered, joking, “his little red hair and a ukulele.”
Foxx’s friend who was an “incredible guitarist” voiced his brief concern because of the mood of the room being very black-centered and motivated.
“And it was just like a movie, I said, ‘Well, let’s see what the kid has,’” Jamie quipped. “And he went out there on that ukulele, got a standing ovation in 12 minutes.”
“And the rest was history,” he added.
History indeed. Over a decade later, Ed seems to be nominated for a Grammy every time he comes out with an album and has even won a couple of them to keep. Not only did Sheeran try to make a name for himself without a home or a place to stay and barely any money, but he also battled through alcoholism and other addictions to make his dreams come true.
Nowadays, he’s happily married with two kids. He’s even releasing his highly anticipated upcoming album Subtract (or –) this May, which will complete the mathematical theme of his previous albums (Plus, Multiply, and Divide).
Sources:
youtube.com/watch?v=5lVjKtQfT9o
