Cassie Kennedy

Prof. Cassel

ENGL101

5 August 2019

Unforgettable Performance

The most memorable concert experience I have ever had was Ed Sheeran’s performance

of his first album, “Plus.” This is a show that I will never forget, and will always make me wish I

could relive it. This particular concert will always hold a special place for me because it was one

of the first concerts I ever went to, and his performance was breath-taking.

I had been anticipating my local radio, WZPL’s, birthday bash concert for quite some

time now. Every year they put on a show with a lineup of about five to seven artists in

celebration of the station’s birthday. This year, I had gotten free tickets through the radio station

and could not have been more excited to attend. Some of my favorite artists at the time; Little

Mix, Emblem3, Cher Lloyd, and Ed Sheeran were performing. When I walked into the concert

venue, the White River State Park, I was blown away by how many people were there. The lawn

was packed and every seat was filled in the assigned seating area. I knew immediately that this

was going to be a night that I would not forget.

Ed Sheeran was the last performer of a long list of artists, and he was a relatively new

singer. However, his set was the one that I was most excited for. At the time, his sound and lyrics

were different from many of the songs you would hear on the radio, and he stood out from many

of the popular artists in 2013. While most artists had upbeat, cliche music, his discography was

full of powerful music. He had an undeniable talent for mixing rap in with his singing, and

making it sound extraordinary. His lyrics told stories that would hit you when you were least
expecting. They told tales of alcohol and drug abuse abuse, miscarriages, and always put a

heartbreaking spin on love. He was an up-and-coming british ginger, and his I loved his music.

Throughout the night, I got increasingly more impatient for Ed to reach the stage. After

each set, I would turn to my sister and tell her we had one less act until Ed Sheeran would

perform. I had just turned 14, at my peak of finding my musical preferences, and I knew there

was something unique about Ed Sheeran even before I saw him live. I wasn’t sure if it was his

way with words, his unorthodox view on life and love, or the fact that he looked and sounded

completely different from anyone else in the industry at the time. But, when he finally came out

to greet the crowd, I was surprised to see only him on the stage. He didn’t have a band, back-up

singers, or even a backtrack behind his singing. His performance was completely organic and

only featured him, his guitar, and a looping device that recorded guitar tracks that he recorded at

the beginning of each song and played throughout. He would use this looping device to record

his guitar track he would need for that song, so that could also play his guitar live on top of that.

This was something that I had never seen before. Many artists put on entire productions that are

full of audio recordings, dancers, and live bands. He had none of it. This made his performance

so much better.

I remember Ed singing an old Irish folk tune that I had never heard before, The Parting

Glass. The song is typically sung at the end of a gathering of friends. Ed was so connected to his

own culture that he was able to captivate his audience and bring some of his own roots so that we

could connect on a deeper level with him. I can now sing every word to this Irish folk song

because it was sung so beautifully the first time I heard it. Another great cover Ed did that night

was “Be My Husband” by Nina Nesbitt. This song is very out of his own style, but his version of
the song shows that Ed could cover any song and make it his own, while also respecting the

original style of the song.

The most memorable part of the entire performance was when the sun was setting on the

outdoor venue. Everyone was singing along, putting flashlights and lighters in the air, and to top

it all off planes started flying overhead. Ed decided he would ignore his given end-time and sang

about 30 minutes past when he was supposed to finish his set of his own songs, along with a few

covers. The noise ordinance law could not stop him, and I was glad that it didn’t. He sang every

song with his heart, and gave all he had to his performance. He was the first artist that I had ever

seen live that was better than he was on a recording. Still, to this day, he is one of the best artists

I have ever seen perform, and I don’t see that changing any time soon.