Ed Sheeran recently called out Band Aid for using his vocals without permission in their recent mix. Fans have now grown curious about the controversy between the singer and the charity supergroup. So, what is Ed Sheeran’s controversy with Band Aid 40 all about?
Here is everything you need to know about the issue surrounding the singer and the musical group.
What happened to Ed Sheeran and Band Aid 40?
Band Aid is about to drop its ultimate remix on November 25, 2024. The track, mixed by Trevor Horn, features Band 20 and Band 30 versions of the popular track, “Do They Know It’s Christmas?”
However, things took an awkward turn recently when Ed Sheeran called out the organizers for using his vocals in the track without his permission. Sheeran stated in his Instagram story, ”My approval wasn’t sought on this new Band Aid 40 release, and had I had the choice I would have respectfully declined the use of my vocals.”
For the unknown, Sheeran was part of Band Aid 30 in 2014. In the above-mentioned post, the 33-year-old shared that his opinion on foreign aid has changed. He added a clip of singer and rapper Fuse ODG criticizing the event in Africa. The rapper denied participating in Band-Aid 30 due to the “harm initiatives like it inflict on Africa” (via The Huffington Post).
Fuse ODG expressed that the aid despite encouraging charity can lead to “damaging stereotypes” that can be detrimental to Africa’s growth and development. Band Aid 40’s new track will feature vocals from Boy George, George Micheal, Sting, and many others.