The North American leg of Ed Sheeran’s Mathematics Tour began on May 6, around the release of his – (Subtract) album and overlapping with his more intimate Subtract Tour.
Khalid has been among Sheeran’s many openers, but he was forced to miss Saturday’s (June 24) show at FedExField in Landover, Maryland.
A fan video making the rounds online captured Sheeran opening for himself and explaining he was on stage earlier than expected because Khalid “got in a car accident this week.”
Sheeran continued, “He’s recovering, and we wish him the best. And I’m gonna say this after every song because if people don’t know I was gonna be the opening act today, people are gonna be walking in, like, ‘This show isn’t what I thought it was. I thought there’d be more fireworks.’ But here we are. I’m basically playing songs from – (Subtract).”
Ed Sheeran opening for…Ed Sheeran!!! What a treat! #edsheeran #edsheeranfedex#edsheeranlandovermd pic.twitter.com/1IHqojqVVp
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Onward
A separate TikTok shows Sheeran enjoying his unusual slot as an opener because “when you’re the main act, there’s a bunch of pressure because people have paid to see you” and joking that the last time he was an opener, MySpace was still popular.
@ronswon Took my wife to see #edsheeran for our anniversary. #edsheeranconcert #myspace
@kaleysolitro Highly suggest taking your 7 year old on a date to see Ed.
According to Complex, Sheeran concluded his opening set by adding, “I really hope Khalid gets well soon and that he’ll be joining us in Boston.” The record-setting Mathematics Tour is scheduled to hit Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts for back-to-back shows on Friday, June 30, and Saturday, July 1.
As of this writing, Billboard has reached out to Khalid’s representation for further details but is awaiting response.
Ed Sheeran is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.