Special night of music as Suffolk's Ed Sheeran performs for free
Some fans queued outside the HMV Empire in Coventry for 17 hours before he took to the stage.
It was a special night for music in Coventry as Suffolk superstar Ed Sheeran performed for the first time since announcing the release of his new album.
700 fans were in attendance at the HMV Empire last night (Wednesday) as the singer performed an intimate gig for HMV’s 100th birthday, and Coventry City of Culture celebrations.
He included new material from his upcoming album =.
The gig also represented the grand opening of the brand new hmv-sponsored Empire concert venue, which recently underwent a £500,000 refurbishment.
Fans began queueing for the gig at around 4.30am, a full 17 hours before Ed took to the stage.
Ed told fans:
“I love having a crowd here, this is great. And getting to play rooms like this again, it’s been quite a long time since I’ve played something that has a roof, if that makes sense, and I really, really love it. This is where I spent so many nights of my life on my first album and second album, playing theatres and academies, and it is always the best buzz.”
HMV, in partnership with Coventry City Council, also hosted a free live-stream of the Centenary Concert at Assembly Festival Garden as part of Coventry’s City of Culture 2021 Celebrations. Some 3,000 fans snapped up tickets to the live-stream in just over 30 minutes last week.
Phil Halliday, Managing Director at hmv and Fopp, said:
“Ed put on an amazing show tonight for hmv’s 100th birthday. It was brilliant to see such a huge superstar perform such an intimate gig – it’s something the lucky fans there will never forget.”