“How can someone else tell me what is or isn’t how I feel?”
From penning Galway Girl to downing pints with a perfect “split the G” and weaving traditional Irish melodies into his music, Ed Sheeran’s fondness for Ireland has never exactly been a secret.
Earlier this summer, the Shape of You singer spoke on The Louis Theroux Podcast about his deep connection to Irish culture — a connection he says shaped him, even if his passport tells a different story.
“I class my culture as Irish. I think that’s what I grew up with,” Sheeran explained. “We’d spend all of our holidays in Ireland. My first musical experiences were in Ireland, I grew up with trad music in the house.
“So, I identify culturally as Irish, but I was obviously born and raised in Britain.”
Sheeran’s remarks quickly sparked online debate, with some questioning his claim. But he pushed back on the criticism, pointing out the obvious: “How can someone else tell me what is or isn’t how I feel?”
Ed Sheeran Pushes Back Against ‘Plastic Paddy’ Criticism Over His Irish Identity
“No one can tell me what my childhood was.”
Ed Sheeran has long woven Irish influences into his music and life — from the storytelling ballad Nancy Mulligan to his fondness for traditional “trad” music and the ease with which he can “split the G” in a pint of Guinness. But when the singer recently described himself as “culturally” Irish despite being born in Britain, not everyone embraced the sentiment.
The backlash was swift, with some accusing him of being a “plastic paddy,” a derogatory term often aimed at members of the Irish diaspora considered too many generations removed to claim the identity.
Sheeran, who grew up in Suffolk, England, points out that his father is from Belfast and that he spent much of his childhood in Ireland. Those experiences, he says, shaped his music, humor, and sense of self.
Speaking on The Tracy Clifford Show on RTÉ, the four-time Grammy winner reflected on the criticism. “I feel like people are a bit like ‘gatekeepey’ sometimes,” he said. “I think it comes from Americans that are 1/16th Irish… I do understand it. But also — no one can tell me what my childhood was, or what the culture that I grew up with, or the music I grew up with, or the humour I grew up with, or the movies I grew up with… I grew up with it, therefore, it’s part of me. Therefore, I feel like it’s part of my culture, and how can someone else tell me what is or isn’t how I feel?”
The singer had already addressed the issue earlier this year. In June, after an online wave of commentary about his remarks, Sheeran posted to his Instagram Story: “My dad is Irish. My family is Irish. I have an Irish passport. The culture I was brought up around is Irish. The first music I learnt was Irish. [Just because] I was born somewhere else doesn’t change my culture, I can be allowed to feel a connection to a place half my family is from.”
His position has remained consistent. In his earlier conversation with Louis Theroux, Sheeran explained that his identity is “something that I’m really proud of and grew up with and want to express.” He added: “I feel like just because I was born in Britain doesn’t necessarily mean that I have to just be [British]. There’s loads of people I know that are half this or quarter this.”
For Sheeran, heritage isn’t just a matter of birthplace — it’s the lived reality of family ties, traditions, and the culture that shaped him.