Lyra Antarctica, the couple’s two-year-old daughter, and Jupiter, a baby girl born in May 2022, are the couple’s only children. The singer has opened up about the couple’s struggles with “fear, depression, and anxiety” after learning that Cherry’s newly discovered tumor could not be treated until after she gave birth. In an Instagram post on Wednesday, the 31-year-old singer revealed his mental health struggles, citing stress from his wife’s illness and the death of his best friend Jamal Edwards as contributing factors.

Jamal Edwards, a music producer and the son of Loose Women star Brenda Edwards, died in February 2022 of a heart attack caused by a combination of cocaine and alcohol. Ed used the tweet to announce the release of his sixth studio album, Subtract, and to explain how the album was influenced by personal traumas. ‘I had worked on Subtract for a decade, trying to sculpt the perfect acoustic album, writing and recording hundreds of songs with a clear vision of what I thought it should be,’ he wrote.

‘Then, at the beginning of 2022, a series of events changed my life, my mental health, and, ultimately, the way I viewed music and art. ‘Songwriting is my therapy. It assists me in making sense of my emotions. I wrote without planning the songs; I just wrote whatever came to mind. And in less than a week, I replaced a decade’s worth of work with my darkest, most introspective thoughts. Within a month, my pregnant wife was diagnosed with a tumor, with no treatment options available until after the birth. My best friend Jamal, who was like a brother to me, died unexpectedly, and I found myself in court defending my integrity and career as a songwriter.

‘I was in a downward spiral of fear, depression, and anxiety. I felt as if I were drowning, my head beneath the surface, looking up but unable to break through for air. ‘As an artist, I didn’t feel like I could put out a body of work that didn’t accurately represent where I am and how I need to express myself at this point in my life.’ ‘This album is purely that,’ Ed continued. It’s allowing access to my soul. For the first time, I’m not attempting to create an album that people will enjoy; instead, I’m simply releasing something that is honest and true to where I am in my adult life.

‘This is my interpretation of last February’s diary entry. This is the function Subtract.’ The musician has not provided any new details about his wife’s condition. His decade-long mathematical series comes to an end with Minus, which comes after Equals (2021), Divide (2017), Multiply (2014), and Plus (2013). (2011). Along with the announcement of his new album, the father of two shared some photos taken by famed photographer Annie Leibovitz.

He also shared a heartfelt video of himself strolling along the beach with song titles written in the sand. He climbed an unstable ladder that collapsed on him at one point. Subtract will be available on May 5th. Ed has also announced a limited tour of UK and European arenas for the coming year, beginning on March 23, 2023, in Manchester, and continuing on to London’s The O2 arena for two nights (March 24 and 25), then on to Glasgow and Dublin for March 28 and 30, and finally ending in Paris on April 2.

Ed returned to social media earlier this month after a long absence, stating that he’s been going through some “turbulent times” in his personal life.
The singer admitted that he hasn’t been as “engaged” with his fans on social media as he would like, with many of his recent posts promoting his music and tour dates. Ed didn’t want to “pretend to be something he wasn’t” during his personal struggles, he said in an Instagram video, but he promised to be more engaged with his fans in the coming weeks.

‘I realize I haven’t been that engaged in my social media or fanbase over the last couple of years, and the things that have been posted on this account may have gotten a bit boring,’ Ed explained. To be completely honest, the reason I’m making this video is because I’ve had some turbulent things happen in my personal life, and I just didn’t feel like going online and pretending to be someone I’m not when I wasn’t feeling like it.’ ‘I know that sounds strange, but I’m making this video to say things are looking up and I’m back online,’ Ed continued.