Ed Sheeran heaps praises on ‘pen pal’ Arijit Singh: One of the most talented humans I've ever met

English singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran just dropped his new song Sapphire, which has been loved for by fans in India. Not just the peppy track, where Sheeran even sings a few lines in Punjabi, and the music video shows snippets of India when Sheeran was here earlier this year. Shah Rukh Khan and Arjit Singh too feature on the video. Sheeran is known to be friends with Arijit, and the duo have even collaborated live on stage before. Recently, the English singer revealed that he first heard Arijit Singh while watching Aashiqui 2 and was blown away by the song Tum Hi Ho.

On watching Aashiqui 2 and creating core memories

“I first became aware of @arijitsingh music when I watched Aashiqui 2 and heard Tum Hi Ho. I was proper spellbound by his voice, the song, the scene in the movie. I checked him out, and got in touch, and said whenever you wanna sing together I’m down. He was playing London, so I went to guest with him and sing Perfect there, it was an incredible show,” the 34-year-old singer wrote in a heartfelt note on Instagram recently.

“I played him an early version of Sapphire in the dressing room, and he instantly had ideas for instruments and melodies. We then were pen pals over email for a bit, until I was in India for a tour. I said to him, we should finish this in person, and he said, please come to my hometown so I can show you my home and culture,” he added.

In February this year, the singer met with Arijit after his concert in Mumbai and enjoyed a scooty ride at the latter’s hometown in Jiyaganj, West Bengal. Videos of the two riding on a bike in the bylanes of Jiyaganj went viral soon after.

Sheeran also shared that his India trip was with his father and how Arijit helped him to create a core memory with his dad.

“Me and him got a flight to Kolkata, then a 5 and a half hour drive to his hometown. We arrived, went on a barge down the river, which was stunning, then got a scooty back to the studio where we finished the song.”

Arijit taught Sheeran how to speak Punjabi and play the sitar, the Perfect singer mentioned in his note. “We then had dinner, and scooted around the village to see the sunset and moon with my dad,” he wrote. Describing the moment as a ‘core memory’ that he would cherish all his life, Sheeran said he was honoured to share it with Arijit.

“He’s one of the most talented humans I've ever met, and I'm so grateful he shared his talent with me for this song,” Sheeran said about Arijit.

A full Punjabi version of Sapphire will be out in a couple of weeks, Sheeran announced.

The warm post about Ed Sheeran praising Arijit Singh didn’t go unnoticed by fans as they flooded the comment section with messages.

“Bro, in no world did you watch Aashiqui 2,” one of them wrote. “An iconic duo,” another commented.

Singer-songwriter Armaan Malik wrote, “Best people.” Farah Khan Kunder commented, “Loved this the moment I heard it .. a year ago.”

Ed Sheeran’s India visit

Earlier this year, the Thinking Out Loud singer visited India for the India leg of his Mathematics tour. This year, Sheeran first performed in Pune’s Yash Lawns on January 30, followed by a concert in Hyderabad on February 2. The singer also collaborated with A.R. Rahman during his Chennai concert on February 5.

Sheeran then performed in Bengaluru on February 8 and February 9. He also enthralled fans with his music in Shillong on February 12 and in Delhi on February 15.

Sheeran has performed in India multiple times before. The singer had performed in India in March 2024. Before that, he visited India during his x Tour in 2015 and his Divide Tour at Mumbai’s Jio Gardens in 2017.