Edward Christopher Sheeran, MBE (born 17 February 1991) is an English singer-songwriter. In early 2011, Sheeran independently released the extended play, No. 5 Collaborations Project. After signing with Asylum Records, his debut album, + (pronounced "plus"), was released in September 2011. It topped the UK and Australian charts, reached number five in the US, and has since been certified eight-times platinum in the UK.
The album contains the single "The A Team", which earned him the Ivor Novello Award for Best Song Musically and Lyrically. In 2012, Sheeran won the Brit Awards for Best British Male Solo Artist and British Breakthrough Act. "The A Team" was nominated for Song of the Year at the 2013 Grammy Awards, where he performed the song with Elton John.
Swansea’s The Bunkhouse saved by Music Venue Trust’s #OwnOurVenues scheme
nme.comwas first revealed by Music Venue Trust in May 2022 and announced as a success a year later after £2.3million was raised by the charity through a series of donations and investments.
Dubbed “The National Trust, but for venues”, and backed by the likes of Ed Sheeran, it sees venues sign a “cultural lease” with Music Venue Properties (MVP) that guarantees that, as long as they operate as a space for grassroots live music for their local community, they can enjoy use of the building.Since the announcement of #OwnOurVenues, MVP, the independent Charitable Community Benefit Society (CCBS) created by Music Venue Trust, has purchased two properties.
The Snug in Atherton was the first to be saved and protected by the scheme in October last year, followed by Preston’s The Ferret in May.The purchase of the Bunkhouse, a 235-capacity live music venue, rehearsal space and photography studio in Swansea, marks the first Welsh venue to be placed under permanent protected status by the scheme.A post shared by The Bunkhouse Swansea (@bunkhouseswansea)“The last few years have been a rollercoaster for The Bunkhouse and the music community in South West Wales,” says Jordan McGuire, Director of The Bunkhouse. “When the building went on the market, the threat of closure was very real, and it wasn’t just about potentially losing my business, it was about losing a home for the musicians, the artists, and the fans who have found their voice here.”McGuire went on to say that the venue had “played a pivotal role in shaping the music scene in Wales,” and that the prospect of its closure “was heartbreaking for everyone”.“Now, with Music Venue Properties stepping in as our landlord, those fears have been laid to rest.
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