Review: Ed Sheeran's layered performance equals pop perfection in Pittsburgh

Ed Sheeran was more than 3,000 miles from home for Saturday night’s concert at Acrisure Stadium in Pittsburgh, but even that distance wasn’t enough to escape a soccer rivalry.

In a sea of thousands, the Ipswich supporter still managed to spot a jersey of rival Norwich.

“He’s worn the shirt just to troll me,” Sheeran said with a laugh.

Besides that, there was no slowing down the British singer/songwriter, who put on a two-plus hour show of pop rock gems with a few ballads, too, for the mostly packed football stadium.

Armed with only a guitar and several looping stations — “Everything you hear tonight is completely live, there is no backing track whatsoever,” he promised — Sheeran layered riffs, adding percussion created by smacking his guitar, to build and recreate his songs.

The giant, in-the-round stage at the 50-yard line had a rotating feature that kept Sheeran in motion so nobody was staring at his back for too long. A massive overhead video screen and six, smaller guitar pick-shaped screens provided additional views and allowed for more seating instead of the usual stadium setup with one end zone out of commission.

This was Sheeran’s first show in Pittsburgh in nearly five years, with his last visit on Sept. 29, 2018, at PNC Park. This wasn’t his first show at Acrisure though, as he opened for Taylor Swift on her Red Tour in 2013. He’s also headlined PPG Paints Arena/Consol Energy Center twice (2015 and 2017) and played Stage AE (2013).

“I just want to say I do not take this for granted, especially in America,” he said. “Being an Englishman coming over to America, I do not take it for granted, that it is mads to be able to play a place like this and have this many people come see me in Pittsburgh, so thank you.”

The multiple Grammy winner started the show with a full band — they joined him on and off for about a third of the show — to roll through “Tides” and “Blow.” Other early highlights included “Shivers” and “Castle on the Hill.”

The concert also featured several songs, including “Eyes Closed,” from his latest album. “-” (otherwise known as “Subtract”), came out in May with a more serious tone, influenced by events like the death of a close friend and a cancer scare with his pregnant wife, to name a few.

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About halfway through the night, opener Khalid accompanied Sheeran on “Beautiful People.” Later, on a rollicking “Galway Girl,” Sheeran was joined by violinist Alicia Enstrom, who cruised around the stage even faster than Sheeran.

About two thirds of the way through the show, right before “Thinking Out Loud,” Sheeran let the crowd know that it would be mostly hits for the rest of the night.

“The songs now are the songs that your grandmother knows,” he said. “And if you don’t know the words to this next song, Pittsburgh, you’re at the wrong concert.”

(In May, Sheeran came out on top in a copyright infringement lawsuit that claimed his hit “Thinking Out Loud” took elements from Marvin Gaye’s “Let’s Get It On.”)

One of those hits was a cover of Justin Bieber’s “Love Yourself” — a song that Sheeran actually wrote. The love song “Perfect” drew an even louder response as part of the crowd erupted over what might have been a marriage proposal. Another late highlight was “Bloodstream,” which built up to a massive crescendo.

Dressed in black pants and a black T-shirt with “PITTSBURGH” on the front for most of the night, Sheeran added a Steelers jersey for the encore. The jersey had a No. 1 and “MAC” on the nameplate, paying tribute to Pittsburgh rapper Mac Miller, who died in 2018. (Sheeran also wore a Mac Miller T-shirt when he played at PNC Park in 2018 just a few weeks after his friend’s death.)

A little snip of Ed Sheeran’s “You Need Me, I Don’t Need You” with a Terrible Towel appearance pic.twitter.com/LF0uTKmR1a

— Mike Palm (@MikePalmMedia) July 9, 2023

That encore began with a blistering “You Need Me, I Don’t Need You,” with huge cheers when Sheeran busted out a Terrible Towel.

“Shape of You,” undoubtedly his biggest hit, was next, followed by the closer, “Bad Habits,” which ended the night with fireworks.

Sheeran’s Mathematics Tour, also known as the +-=÷x Tour, began in 2022, with the next shows on Friday at Royal Oak Music Theatre in Royal Oak, Mich., and Saturday at Detroit’s Ford Field.

Opening bands

Khalid, who served as primary support, returned to the stage after missing the past two weekends after being injured in a car crash. The R&B singer best known for songs like “Young Dumb & Broke” and “Better” looked joyful as he bounced around the stage for 40 minutes with an ever-present smile.

“Life is crazy, but we all still have it,” Khalid said in reference to the aftermath of the wreck, “so we’re all going to live our best lives.”

Armenian singer/songwriter Rosa Linn, who represented her country in the 2022 Eurovision Song Contest, opened the show and showed off her multi-instrumental talents, with stops on drums, guitar and keyboard in a 30-minute set that included her biggest single, “Snap,” and a cover of Stevie Nicks’ “If I Were You.”

During “Never Be Mine,” she left the stage to be closer to the crowd, performing a full lap, doling out high fives, stopping to sign a few autographs and donning a gifted bracelet as she sang.