Ed Sheeran Says He and Taylor Swift Share the Same “Insecurities”: “[She] Genuinely Gets It”

Taylor Swift and Ed Sheeran are two of the most famous, successful, and decorated musicians of their generation. Between them, they have 16 Grammy Awards and have played live to millions of fans; they also have a combined Instagram following of about 300 million. But to one another, they’re just best friends who tease each other, support each other, and write music together.

Their friendship goes back a decade to when Sheeran found out Swift was a fan. They wrote some music together, and the rest, as they say, is history. In fact, Swift even had a hand in helping Sheeran get together with his now-wife, Cherry Seaborn, after years of missed connections. Talk about a best friend who truly has your back!

Over the years, Sheeran and Swift have taken dozens of cute photos and videos together, and they’re always quick to share a kind word or two one another. Whether it’s thanking the other during an award-show speech or shouting them out on social media, the praise never stops. And when it comes to the music they make together — well, it’s simply stunning. You can’t go wrong with such talented artists in the room.

As of 2023, their friendship is clearly still going strong, with Sheeran telling Zane Lowe that his conversations with Swift feel like “therapy,” per People. “She’s one of the only people that actually truly understands where I’m at,” the star added.

For more details on this sweet friendship, keep reading.

2012: Taylor Swift and Ed Sheeran First Meet and Collaborate

Swift and Sheeran first became friends in 2012 when after Sheeran found out that Swift was a fan, according to People. He made a call, and the two ended up making “Everything Has Changed” together — their very first collab. It appears on Swift’s “Red” album.

December 2012: Taylor Swift and Ed Sheeran Perform at Z100 Jingle Ball Together

For their first live performance together, the two hit the stage in New York City at Z100’s Jingle Ball, held at Madison Square Garden.

September 2013: Ed Sheeran Goes on Tour With Taylor Swift

After realizing how well they work together and how much they enjoy each other’s company, Swift to invite Sheeran out on her “Red” tour. He joined her on stage from time to time, including when he dressed up as a clown at the closing show in Nashville.

November 2013: Taylor Swift Joins Ed Sheeran on Stage at Madison Square Garden

In late 2013, Swift joined Sheeran on stage at Madison Square Garden to play “Everything Has Changed.” She even donned an “I Heart Ed” shirt to match his “I Heart NY” shirt.

January 2014: Taylor Swift and Ed Sheeran Buddy Up at the Grammys

With their friendship in full swing, Swift and Sheeran hung out at industry events and often championed each other’s work. They posed for photos at the 2014 Grammys, among other events.

February 2014: Ed Sheeran Pops Up at Taylor Swift’s London Concert

When Swift took her “Red” tour overseas, she picked up a different opening act — but that didn’t stop best buddy Sheeran from popping into the London show to duet with his pal.

December 2014: Taylor Swift and Ed Sheeran Both Perform at the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show

At the end of 2014, both Swift and Sheeran were tapped to perform at the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show, which was held in London that year.

February 2015: Taylor Swift Gives Ed Sheeran a Shoutout in Her Brits Speech

In 2015, Swift clinched her inaugural Brit Award for Best International Female Artist. During her acceptance speech, she took a moment to express her gratitude to Ed Sheeran, whom she affectionately referred to as one of her favorite British individuals. She credited Sheeran for introducing her to British culture, including trips to pubs and mastering the art of making tea. Swift concluded her acknowledgment by declaring her love for Sheeran, emphasizing their close friendship and his significant influence on her understanding of the UK.

July 2015: Ed Sheeran Makes an Appearance at Taylor Swift’s Fourth of July Party

Swift might have removed the iconic photos from her Instagram of her renowned Fourth of July bash in 2015, but they remain archived elsewhere on the internet. Among the attendees was Sheeran, who made an appearance at her party. Swift posted a snapshot with Sheeran donning a red coat, accompanied by the caption “When Ed shows up in a red coat for the 4th of July because he just can’t let it go,” as reported by People.

February 2016: Ed Sheeran and Taylor Swift Support Each Other at the Grammys

The two made a cute pair at the 2016 Grammy Awards, where both took home a couple of new trophies.

2017: Ed Sheeran Features on Taylor Swift’s Song “End Game”

Swift and Sheeran teamed up again for “End Game,” which appears on Swift’s “Reputation” album. He cowrote the song with her and also starred in the video.

February 2018: Taylor Swift Jokes About Ed Sheeran’s Height

Like any close friendship, Taylor Swift and Ed Sheeran enjoy teasing each other. Swift shared an adorable video revealing how Sheeran always attempts to physically “elevate” himself when they’re together. She jokingly referred to it as him “peacocking,” while he claimed he was merely trying to appear taller. However, the highlight of the video was Swift showing off her sneakers, which she wore to avoid towering over him quite so much.

September 2018: Taylor Swift and Ed Sheeran Go on a Hike

In this slightly chaotic video, Swift picks on Sheeran while they’re hiking before they both joke about going up against Drake for favorite pop/rock album at that year’s American Music Awards. Spoiler alert: Swift won the award.

November 2021: Taylor Swift Rereleases “Everything Has Changed” With Ed Sheeran

As part of her project to rerecord and rerelease all of her old music after losing her masters, Swift brought Sheeran back into the studio to redo “Everything Has Changed” off of her “Red” album. The song appears on “Red (Taylor’s Version).”

November 2021: Taylor Swift Releases “Run” With Ed Sheeran

Also part of her rereleasing project, Swift dropped “Run,” a song from the vault that she’d previously written with Sheeran. He shared on Instagram, “‘Run’ is the first song me and @taylorswift ever wrote together, and ‘Everything Has Changed’ was the second. We re-recorded both of them for ‘Red (Taylor’s Version)’ which is out today and they are just great. So fun getting to revisit these again.”

February 2022: Ed Sheeran Releases “The Joker & the Queen” Featuring Taylor Swift

Sheeran and Swift collaborated on the song “The Joker & the Queen,” and upon its release, Sheeran shared on Instagram how grateful he was to work with Swift again, calling her the “best singer/songwriter in the world” and a close friend. Even sweeter are the stars of the video — the same pair who starred in Sheeran and Swift’s “Everything Has Changed” video 10 years ago.

May 2023: Ed Sheeran Opens Up About His Bond With Taylor Swift

In a clip from Sheeran’s interview with Zane Lowe shared by People on May 4, Sheeran revealed the ongoing supportive nature of his relationship with Swift. He expressed how he often engages in lengthy conversations with Swift because he believes she’s one of the few people who truly understands him. “I have long, long, long conversations with Taylor about stuff just because I feel like she’s one of the only people that actually truly understands where I’m at,” he explained. “I had an hour-20 conversation with her yesterday and we were just — everything that was on our minds we talked about. I mean that in itself is kind of therapy as well, because you’re actually talking to someone that genuinely gets it. That has all the things that you feel and have insecurities about and how other people treat you or how your family treat you, how your friends treat you. She’s basically in the same sphere.”

Sheeran also disclosed that Swift had encouraged him to collaborate with her “Folklore” collaborator Aaron Dessner. Despite typically maintaining some distance from Swift’s collaborators, Sheeran was influenced by her advice. “I’m always — not guarded, but I kind of would keep my distance if there would be a collaborator that she’d be working with closely just because that’s her thing. And I don’t want to be like, ‘Well going to do that too,'” he explained. “But she was like, ‘I think it’d be really important for you as an artist to do what I did and work with Aaron because this is what it did for me. And I think you and Aaron should work together.'”