Ed Sheeran’s “Bad Habits” are Keeping Him at the Top of the Charts

“Bad Habits” is a song by English singer Ed Sheeran, released on 25 June 2021 through Asylum Records UK as the lead single of his upcoming fifth studio album. The song marks his first solo release from an album in over four years. A limited edition CD single was also released, containing only this track.

A slower acoustic song was planned to be released as the lead single from Sheeran’s upcoming fifth studio album. However, when the easing of COVID-19 pandemic restrictions were announced in England in early 2021, Sheeran chose to record “Bad Habits” and release it instead. “I was like, ‘I don’t know if the world needs a depressing sad, slow acoustic song when it’s all opening up'”, Sheeran said. He wrote the song in January 2021 to “surprise people” and “make something that was totally different” to what is expected of him.

“My bad habits lead to late nights, endin’ alone
Conversations with a stranger I barely know
Swearin’ this will be the last, but it probably won’t
I got nothin’ left to lose, or use, or do

My bad habits lead to wide eyes starin’ at space
And I know I’ll lose control of the things that I say
Yeah, I was lookin’ for a way out, now I can’t escape
Nothin’ happens after two, it’s truе, it’s true
My bad habits lead to you”

The music video for “Bad Habits” was directed by Dave Meyers. It portrays Sheeran as a vampire in a hot pink suit. The video starts in a hair salon with Sheeran as a vampire, withering the flower before flying across the chaos-ridden streets. He joins with several other monsters in doing various activities at the panicking crowd, until the sun began to rise. Most of the monsters went into hiding, with few vaporized by the sunlight, except for Sheeran, who he transforms back into his normal self as the video ends.

Sheeran said he wanted the video to “play on the nature of habits in a fantastical way so I decided on vampires.” It was inspired by the song’s lyrics and American television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

The catchy tune is currently #2 on pop charts across the United States. As of September 2021, the official music video has over 169 million views. Watch and listen here.

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