People only just realising why Ed Sheeran's albums are named after symbols

He is readying to release his eighth album to his loyal fans - but many have started to question how it got its sweet and simple name. Singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran has released his album Play today, on September 12, with the new album signifying a new chapter in his musical and creative career.

It also marks the competition of his mathematic series, releasing + (plus) in 2011, x (multiply) in 2014, ÷ (divide) in 2017, = (equals) in 2021, and - (subtract) in 2023. He then went onto perform the +−=÷× Tour, pronounced The Mathematics Tour, before turning his attention to a new era with his highly-anticipated album, Play. But speaking about his mathematic series, one confused fan asked on Reddit: " Why is Ed Sheeran naming his albums with mathematical operators? Does it symbolise something?"

In response, one user said: "It doesn't symbolise anything. He chose to do it because the album names are easy to remember and the colourful album art with recognisable symbols sticks out like a sore thumb on streaming platform playlists - and he wasn't wrong. It worked."

However, another used claimed: "He said during an interview that he sucked at math when he was younger, and he wanted to sound smart."

A third user said: "Plus is the addition to his old songs. Multiply well multiplied them. Divide was a whole new thing. Equals was a mix of all of them. Subtract was stripped down."

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According to a statement on Medium, the names served a partial purpose from a marketing standpoint - and Ed "liked the idea of his albums’ artwork to just be a single colour and a unique symbol."

A statement reads: "The first album’s artwork 'is orange, and it has a white plus symbol on it.' The second is 'Bright green with a black multiple [symbol].'

"The point was for his albums to be easily recognisable. 'You see a billboard of…., a red Equal sign; you go, ‘Oh, Ed’s releasing an album’.

"Still, the reason for the mathematical symbols had more to it than just marketing. Ed made a plan at the age of 18 to release a series of five albums with five symbols in mind, representing five concepts for those records."

With his new album, fans have started to theorise if he'll follow a similar theme, especially as the artwork shows a sold pink colour with a simple play button alongside the word 'Play'.

The album description reads: "After closing the chapter on his Mathematics series, Ed Sheeran is finally back and stepping boldly into a fresh new phase for 2025.

"By exploring the common threads of scale, rhythm, and melody that connect musical traditions throughout history, Sheeran has crafted a collection of songs that seamlessly blend these influences into a bold, pop-driven sound."

Commenting on the new album, one user said: "This one is his last math album, his next five-symbol set are allegedly 'play', 'pause', 'stop', 'rewind', and 'fast-forward' as he said the next set of five is already tattooed on his arm."

Speaking on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, he confirmed the speculation and shared how he plans to create an album of unreleased songs that will be released on the day of his death - under the album name Eject.