Ed Sheeran Lets His Guard Down for Disney+ Docuseries ‘The Sum of It All’

Ahead of Ed Sheeran’s upcoming album — (Subtract), the singer will provide an inside look into his life, career, and new LP with the Disney+ docuseries Ed Sheeran: The Sum of It All.

Premiering May 3 on the streaming service, the four-part docuseries will chart Sheeran’s rise from a child with a stutter to stadium-filling superstar, complete with never-before-seen footage from his personal archives, new interviews with Sheeran and his family, intimate performances, and more.

“Ginger hair, really short, he stutters. That guy doesn’t become a pop star. It’s so unlikely,” Sheeran says in the trailer of his rise to stardom. “You just have to work harder because there’s always someone who wants it more than you.”

“I’ve always been very guarded in my personal and private life; the only documentary I’ve ever made has been one that focused on my songwriting,” Sheeran said in a statement. “Disney approached me to make a four-part documentary, and it felt like the right time to open the door and let people in. I hope people enjoy it.”

The docuseries premieres two days before Subtract arrives on May 5. On March 25, Sheeran will share the LP’s latest single, “Eyes Closed,” a snippet of which appears in the trailer.

Keeping with the name of his latest (and final) math-themed album, Subtract deals with loss and grief; in this case, the album was informed by the 2022 death of Sheeran’s good friend Jamal Edwards.

“Loss just took over my life. Every time something massive happens, I tend to write a song about it,” Sheeran says in the trailer.

The four episodes of Ed Sheeran: The Sum of It All are divided into four themes: Love, Loss, Focus, and Balance. The docuseries finds Sheeran dealing with the sudden death of Edwards while balancing his home life (and health issues related to his wife Cherry) and the recording of Subtract. “In each episode, Ed faces themes and emotions that most people experience. Ed expresses his deeper thoughts as he reassesses life and explores what he thinks of the world, of himself and how this difficult time has influenced him and his new music,” Disney+ said of the docuseries.

“In this docu-series, we’re going to reveal a side of Ed Sheeran that fans have never seen before,” Ayo Davis, president of Disney Branded Television, said in a statement. “Together with [producers] Fulwell 73, we’ve created something truly authentic and personal that will not only entertain audiences but also inspire them to dream big and pursue their passions.”