Introduction-+Dear+Reader

Dear Reader,

For the multi-genre research project my topic was Ed Sheeran. I was inspired to write about Ed Sheeran because he is my favorite artist. In addition, his story speaks to me and motivates me. I have a passion for music and love to sing and write. As a result, I am able to connect to Ed Sheeran’s love for music. He can be deemed as a talented singer and songwriter because of his success in the music industry. What strikes me is the fact that he was able to reach success by staying true to himself and being legitimate. The way in which Ed Sheeran rose to fame, through sheer talent and authentic music inspires me. I wanted to use this as my repeated element so I wrote a phrase to sum it up. The phrase is, stay true to yourself by following your heart and you will succeed. This phrase speaks to me because I think one of the most important values is to be yourself and be genuine, rather than being someone your not and fake. I believe Ed Sheeran thinks the same way, and it reflects in his music and his personality. Where Ed Sheeran began in his music compared to where he is now also inspires me. When he first began music he didn’t have any connections, and was in the same place that any aspiring artist begins. However, he put hard work and dedication into his music which advanced his career. He made himself known, and made connections for himself. All of the challenges that new artists he overcome. The most amazing part is that he was able to get through the hardest part, the beginning, as an independent artist. Combined, all of these facts give hope to aspiring artists that one day their music might be heard and appreciated. Along my research journey I learned many new facts and formed a new view of who Ed Sheeran really is. In one interview he said something that stood out and stuck with me. He was talking about a specific song called the A team. It is about touchy subject matter, describing the way in which a women is forced to earn money and how she spends it, ending with her dying because of these choices she makes. In the interview he said after one gig a young women came up to him, and said this song changed her life. Ed described this experience as gratifying and moving to know you have made a difference in someone’s life. Having a positive impact on someone else’s life is one of my goals. So, when I saw this interview I knew that I had picked a good research topic. In the five pieces in this multi-genre research project I tried to convey everything that stood out to me about Ed, and everything that made me interested in him. The first piece is a report card with a letter to his parents. In this piece I was trying to articulate Ed Sheeran’s passion for music. I wanted to show that he was willing to give up everything to focus fully on his music career. The second piece is a series of journal entries. This piece is suppose to highlight the trials and triumphs that he experienced over the course of four years. The narrative is the third piece, in which I was focusing on how Ed Sheeran knows who he is and doesn’t change for anyone. The next piece is an interview transcript. In the interview I describe different parts of his life by describing the songs on his album. The final piece is an advice column. This piece brings the project full circle with Ed giving advice to someone who is in the position he started in. In the pieces I tried to convey that the choses Ed has made has affected his career and set him on the path of success. This ties into the message in the poem __The Road Not Taken__ by Robert Frost. For example, his decision to drop out of school at age sixteen is very controversial. In addition, it is not a common thing people do. However, it turned out that this was a favorable decision because it set him up to gain experiences and meet the right people who helped him with his music. There are other decisions shown in the pieces that convey similar messages. I hope that after reading the pieces in the project, you will walk away with a new perspective on how success can come about. Or, maybe you will learn that dedication and hard work pay off. Perhaps you might discover a new favorite artist. Enjoy the rest of the project.

Your Author, Kate Gerry