Ed Sheeran broke down while discussing his wife Cherry Seaborn’s fragile health and the sudden death of his best friend Jamal Edwards in a trailer for a new four-part series on Disney+ released today.
The British megastar, 32, sobs in the back of a car in an emotional teaser for The Sum Of It All, which will air on May 3.
Ed said recently he had ‘spiralled’ into depression after his wife was diagnosed with a tumour while pregnant last year – delaying treatment – and his first mentor, Jamal Edwards, died of a heart attack in February 2022.
And today’s trailer shows the Suffolk-born singer-songwriter sobbing as he grapples with the death of his friend compounded by his wife Cherry’s health battle as she prepared to give birth to their second child, born in May 2022.
Then there is a clip of him crying on stage, with Cherry saying: ‘I’ve never seen him cry on stage’, adding: ‘He hasn’t had the time to process and be at peace with his thoughts.’
Ed then says to the camera: ‘You guys said, “Do you want to make a documentary?” and I said, “Yeah, it’ll be me in the studio and we’ll play a gig”. But he added that after the trauma of the past year: ‘That’s not what the documentary is’.
Emotional: Ed Sheeran can be seen breaking down in tears in the first trailer for his new documentary series The Sum Of It All
Family: Ed’s wife Cherry Seaborn is also in the docuseries, with clips of her pregnant with the couple’s two children Lyra, two, and Jupiter, 10 months
Breaking down: A clip is shown of him crying on stage as well, with Cherry saying: ‘I’ve never seen him cry on stage’
Tragic: Ed describes meeting his best friend Jamal Edwards, who gave him his first big break, and their friendship before his sudden death last year
The four-part series, out in six weeks, will chart Sheeran’s path to stardom.
The trailer starts with Ed talking about his childhood, growing up with a stutter, and saying: ‘That guy doesn’t grow up to be a pop star. It’s so unlikely’.
Childhood videos of Ed are interspersed with clips of him on stage during his sellout arena tours.
Viewers will see him going from the beginning of his career to becoming one of music’s biggest stars.
Ed describes meeting his best friend Jamal Edwards, who gave him his first big break, and their friendship before his sudden death last year.
Jamal, a music producer and the son of Loose Women star Brenda Edwards, tragically died after a cardiac arrest brought on by cocaine and alcohol in February 2022 at the age of 31.
Ed’s wife Cherry Seaborn is also seen in the docuseries, with clips of her pregnant with the couple’s two children Lyra, two, and Jupiter, 10 months.
The pair are seen going on dates together, with Ed saying: ‘Everything in my life sort of got so much better when Cherry came into it.’
However, the series also delves into Cherry’s health issues and the toll it took on the couple.
Recently, Ed revealed that the couple were plagued with ‘fear, depression and anxiety’ because Cherry was diagnosed with a tumour that she couldn’t have treated until after she’d given birth to their second child.
The trailer ends with happier videos of Ed celebrating his birthday, playing on stage and laughing with his friends as he says ‘life can be unpredictable’.
Journey: The singer, 32, will be showing the ups and downs of his life on the road to stardom in the four-part series on Disney+, which will air on May 3
The series also delves into Cherry’s health issues and the toll it took on the couple
The trailer ends with happier videos of Ed celebrating his birthday, playing on stage and laughing with his friends as he says ‘life can be unpredictable’
Success story: Childhood videos of Ed are interspersed with clips of him on stage during his sold-out arena tours
It comes after Ed revealed that the first single off his new album Subtract is dedicated to his late friend Jamal.
Eyes Closed will be released on March 24, the first single off Ed’s new album Subtract.
Ed recently announced the release of his sixth studio album, explaining it had been inspired by personal tragedies he has faced.
Posting on Instagram to his 42million followers on Wednesday, the Shape Of You singer revealed the loss of his close friend had inspired the track and that he is ‘dancing with my eyes closed to try get through it’.
He penned alongside the post: ‘Eyes Closed is out 24th march, you can pre order it now.
‘This song is about losing someone, feeling like every time you go out and you expect to just bump into them, and every thing just reminds you of them and things you did together.
‘You sort of have to take yourself out of reality sometimes to numb the pain of loss, but certain things just bring you right back into it.
‘Blue was Jamal’s colour, but now is all I feel. And I guess music helps heal, so I’m dancing with my eyes closed to try get through it x’
Alongside the images, the singer posted two black-and-white photographs, where he appeared deep in thought as he reflected on the emotional toll of the past couple of years.
Subtract is set to be released on May 5 with Asylum Records and Atlantic Records. It is thought it will be similar to the hitmaker’s earlier works with an acoustic feel.
