Ed Sheeran is no stranger to vulnerability — but his latest release, “Old Phone,” may be one of his most personal and poignant to date. The second single from his upcoming album Play (out September 12), “Old Phone” arrives with a deeply emotional video directed by long-time collaborator Emil Nava, documenting Sheeran’s journey back through memory and grief.
The video opens with Sheeran discovering his old Blackberry and reading long-lost messages from people he can no longer talk to. Inspired by that moment, he decided to build a one-of-a-kind pop-up pub in Ipswich, Massachusetts, and invited fans to attend — with one catch: they had to submit meaningful messages or videos from their old phones.
What follows is part music video, part documentary. As the Old Phone Pub takes shape, fans line up for a chance to see Sheeran perform in an intimate setting — and maybe share their own story. Clips submitted by fans are projected on the outside walls of the venue, including heartbreaking home movies of lost loved ones and cherished moments frozen in time.
One clip shows two young sisters playing — both now deceased — as their mother shares the backstory with Sheeran. Another fan shows a wedding dance with his late grandmother. Sheeran interacts with each of them outside the bar, and later delivers a tearful acoustic performance inside, backed by Irish musicians and the quiet hum of community.
The track’s gentle guitar and nostalgic lyrics — “I found my old phone today / In a box that I had hidden away” — are a perfect match for the raw emotion captured in the visuals. Sheeran says he wanted the video to feel “raw, stripped-back, emotional, nostalgic and special,” and that’s exactly what it delivers.
“Old Phone” follows the release of “Azizam” and builds anticipation for Play, which Sheeran has been teasing with rare photo drops and the creation of a new Instagram account, @teddysoldphone, where he shares forgotten snapshots from his pre-2015 phone era.