"New Man" is a song by English singer-songwriter

Ed Sheeran Edward Christopher Sheeran (; born 17 February 1991) is an English singer-songwriter. Born in Halifax, West Yorkshire and raised in Framlingham, Suffolk, he began writing songs around the age of eleven. In early 2011, Sheeran independently re ...

from his third studio album '' ÷'' (2017). It was written and produced by Sheeran and

Benny Blanco Benjamin Joseph Levin (born March 8, 1988), known professionally as Benny Blanco (stylized in all lowercase), is an American record producer. He is the recipient of the 2013 Hal David Starlight Award from the Songwriters Hall of Fame. He is als ...

, and co-written with Ammar Malik and

Jessie Ware Jessica Lois Ware (born 15 October 1984) is an English singer, songwriter and broadcaster. Ware came to prominence following the release of her debut studio album, '' Devotion'' (2012), which peaked at number five on the UK Albums Chart, produc ...

. It is the eighth track on the album. After the album's release, the song peaked at number 5 on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

. It has been certified Gold by the

British Phonographic Industry British Phonographic Industry (BPI) is the British recorded music industry's Trade association. It runs the BRIT Awards, the Classic BRIT Awards, National Album Day, is home to the Mercury Prize, and co-owns the Official Charts Company with ...

(BPI) for sales of over 400,000.

Background

According to Sheeran, he originally intended the song to be in the album only as a bonus track. However, the label insisted that the song should be included in the main album, and it would be the only track in the album he allowed to be included at someone else's insistence. He said that the song is not about any specific person, although parts of the lyrics was inspired by people he had met. He had just finished writing another song with

and she suggested that they try to write something for him. He said: "I've had this idea about writing the f-ckboy anthem. 'Cos like, we all know them, we've all been them at some point. I was basically like, let's write a list of the things, like you know when your ex leaves you and the first guy she gets with, ..what that guy is like." The song features vocals from Francis and the Lights at the end.

Critical reception

Taylor Weatherby of '' Billboard'' named this song the one with the "craziest lyrics" of ''÷''. She also noticed that "Sheeran found a way to include the phrase "bleached arsehole" into a song (the line "He's got his eyebrows plucked and his arsehole bleached," in the first verse), it definitely can't go unmentioned—especially since

Kanye West Ye ( ; born Kanye Omari West ; June 8, 1977) is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, and fashion designer. Born in Atlanta and raised in Chicago, West gained recognition as a producer for Roc-A-Fella Records in the ea ...

was the last major artist to incorporate that graphic phrase. Coincidence that West's wife

Kim Kardashian Kimberly Noel Kardashian (formerly West; born October 21, 1980) is an American socialite, media personality, and businesswoman. She first gained media attention as a friend and stylist of Paris Hilton, but received wider notice after the s ...

is also mentioned in "New Man"? We may never know."

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

References

{{authority control 2017 songs Ed Sheeran songs Songs written by Ed Sheeran Songs written by Ammar Malik Songs written by Jessie Ware Song recordings produced by Benny Blanco Songs written by Benny Blanco