Ed Sheeran divides fans with Glastonbury headline set

Ed Sheeran divides fans with Glastonbury headline set



Ed Sheeran has made a name for himself thanks to his one-man show performances and on Sunday night, he brought an end to another Glastonbury Festival on the Pyramid Stage in front of tens of thousands of revellers.

While many showered the star with huge cheers and applause, his act had appeared to divide viewers, with his use of a loop pedal within his performance causing some confusion.

Many fans praised the Castle On The Hill singer for 'absolutely smashing' his headline set, while others complained Ed hadn't been worthy of the slot and questioned why he was using a 'backing track' instead of a live band.



He reeled out a string of hits such as Lego House, Shape of You and The A-Team, winning himself high praise from fans on social media.

Clearly thrilled to be closing the annual music festival, Ed snapped a photo of the crowd before ending his set and insisted he 'never dreamed he would get the opportunity' to headline.



Sheeran, 26, who admitted battling nerves as he stepped out on the Pyramid Stage, wrapped up by showing off his guitar skills in a dazzling performance of his hit You Need Me, I Don't Need You.

He thanked Glastonbury for having him and said of headlining: 'I would like to say it was a dream of mine.

'But I never thought I would even get to the point where I was playing this stage, let alone headlining it.'



However, Sheeran's performance - which was watched by David and Victoria Beckham from the stage wings - appeared not to please everyone, with some music fans calling out the star for using a 'backing track' instead of a live band - as usually expected at the festival.

They penned: 'Watching Ed Sheeran he is s***e. Who's playing all the other instruments I can hear? Is it a backing tape?

'Truth be told, guitar plays by itself, ghost backing singers, backing tracks. Ed Sheeran has bombed #glastonbury2017.

'Where is Ed Sheeran's band? Glastonbury is supposed to be about live music, not singing to a backing track. Need #Davegrohl #Glastonbury2017.

'I have truly tried to like Ed Sheeran but gawd he is dreadful, why play the biggest gig of your life to backing tape, not good Ed.'



Others, however, were quick to rush to the songwriter's defence and pointed out that Ed uses a loop pedal live on stage to create the different layers to his tracks throughout his performance.

The mechanism allows him to build on each song, adding different guitar melodies, percussive use of his guitar and vocal harmonies, which he then performs his track over.

Fans often see Ed move between his main microphone and the one attached to his loop pedal at the beginning of each song and sometimes during to create his famous hits all by himself as part of his one-man show.

One fan hit back at the criticism the star had received and vented: 'I can't believe there are still people in the world who think Ed Sheeran uses a backing track.

'EVERYTHING IS LIVE. EVERY SOUND IS HIM.'



A second agreed: 'All the Ed Sheeran "backing track" tweets are hilarious! Like or loath, 1 guy, a guitar & a loop pedal commanding 100k people!'

A third added: 'Wish @edsheeran would explain his loop pedal so many tweets thinking he just has a backing track when he doesn't #Glastonbury.'

While one more tweeted: 'So many people complaining that Ed Sheeran is using a 'backing tape' clearly don't understand the concept of loop pedals.'

Ed hasn't responded to his critics on social media. MailOnline have contacted a representative for him.

As well as criticism over the way he performed on stage, others claimed Nile Rodgers and Chic, who were on the Pyramid Stage earlier in the evening and dazzled the crowd with 70s disco classics, were too tough an act for Sheeran to follow, while others questioned why Ed had been given the headline slot.



One performer, meanwhile, who did win near universal praise was former Bee Gee Barry Gibb.

The 70-year-old performed in the 'legend slot' to a huge crowd and was cheered throughout by fans both at the festival and at home.

Paul Bentham tweeted: 'I'm sure Ed Sheeran played a wonderful set but tonight, I was far happier to watch the afternoon slot of Barry Gibb owning it this afternoon.'

Brian O'Connor added: 'Watching an endearingly nervous Barry Gibb's Glastonbury set. What a catalogue. Gem after gem. Unreal.'

Sheeran's performance brought to an end to three days of musical performances.

He had stepped out on stage after Biffy Clyro entertained the masses with a slew of their favourite hits.



Highlights on Sunday included Nile Rodgers and Chic, who brought some 80s magic with disco hits such as Everybody Dance, I Want Your Love and Upside Down.