After more than 250 performances on the road, Ed Sheeran may be headed back to the castle on the hill.
On the final stop of his Divide tour earlier this week, the Grammy winner began thinking out loud and announced his break from music. "As you may or not know, I've been on the Divide tour for over two years now and this is the last day of the whole thing," he told the crowd in Ipswich, England, according to The Sun. "There is something very bittersweet about it."
"I love that you guys are here and we are ending it in Ipswich," he continued. "This is my last gig for probably 18 months."
After all, the nonstop can take a toll. "We've played all around the world," Sheeran said. "Glastonbury, Wembley Stadium. All these amazing venues, America, New Zealand, Australia, Asia, South America—it's been a wild one."
"I was told before I came on that, now, at the end of this tour, I've played to nine million people around the world," he continued. "It is the biggest tour ever."
And now, it's time to take a step back. "It kind of feels like, in a weird way, that you're breaking up with a girlfriend that you've been with for years," the Brit confessed. "It sounds odd but it has been a long tour."
Before his final bow, he showed his appreciation for everyone involved in making Divide such a success. "Thank you to everyone who has given me a chance," he said. "This is my last song. I wrote this when I was 15 years old. See you in a few years time. Thank you."
Later, he took to Instagram to look back on his experience with Divide.
"9 million people, 893 days, 46 countries, 175 cities, 260 shows, 268 touring crew, 193265 miles travelled, 2 broken arms, 3 marriages, 4 babies. What a wild ride this Divide tour has been," he wrote to his 31 million followers. "The whole process of writing the album starting in 2015, then recording it in 2016, promoting it, setting out on the road to play it for all of you guys. It's so weird to put it to bed and move on."
"Thank you to everyone involved in this whole Divide process, all the people who helped make the album, all the people who helped promote the album, all the fans who listened and came to watch, this wouldn't be possible without you," he continued. "Most of all I want to thank my fantastic touring team, who have given up their lives for 2 and a half years to help me achieve my dreams. Thank you for all of your hard work and constant friendship. The Divide tour - 2017 -2019. Officially the biggest tour of all time, so weird to say that, and we survived it!"
He reiterated the message on Instagram Stories by writing, "I'm not bloody retiring either, press are being over dramatic. I'm having 18 months off to make another album and hang out with my cats."
Earlier this summer, while promoting his album No. 6 Collaborations Project, the 28-year-old confirmed his marriage to longtime love Cherry Seaburn and opened up about how she constantly supports this wild reality.
"I tour a lot," he said told iHeartRadio's Charlamagne Tha God. "I spend a lot of time on the road. And I have to go on the road and have this belief that, you know, this is meant to be."
"I constantly wake up every day with Cherry and I'm just like, 'Why the f--k are you with me? You could literally be with whoever you wanted, and you've chosen me," he mused. "And I'm saying all of the things that I think are wrong with me, but you still want to be with me.' And I just find that amazing."