Behind every chart-topping earworm that’s been living rent-free in your brain, there’s a shadow army of talent working backstage. While vocalists and producers get the spotlight, it’s those caffeine-fueled songwriters hunched over pianos at 3 AM who really deserve your streaming dollars. The music industry’s secret weapon? That unassuming ginger troubadour Ed Sheeran.
You might know Sheeran as the acoustic-wielding nice guy filling stadiums, but he’s also been musical graffiti-tagging hits across the industry with such ninja-like stealth that most listeners have no idea he’s infiltrated their playlists. His songwriting collaborations aren’t just side hustles—they’re a shadow empire that proves he’s the Kevin Bacon of pop music, somehow connected to everything you’ve had on repeat.
20. Fallin’ All In You – Shawn Mendes
Modern hit-making resembles a corporate merger more than a romantic creative process, with over 60% of today’s earworms emerging from songwriter collectives rather than solo guitar heroes. “Fallin’ All In You,” that Mendes track that somehow makes teen heartache sound like ancient wisdom, began as Sheeran’s melodic skeleton before a writing team fleshed it into something with commercial muscle.
Mendes initially balked at those falsetto sections that would become the song’s emotional high point—like someone refusing to try sushi before discovering it’s their favorite food. The final product blends Mendes’ vulnerability with Sheeran’s architectural precision, creating a hit that sounds both spontaneous and meticulously crafted. Turns out the perfect pop song is just someone’s comfort zone with the walls knocked down.
19. East Side – Benny Blanco
The modern music landscape is basically a legal minefield where an accidental four-note similarity can trigger corporate warfare faster than you can say “pre-chorus.” Benny Blanco’s “Eastside” with Halsey and Khalid rocketed up charts with its summer playlist energy before getting body-slammed by a copyright lawsuit claiming ownership of that catchy riff.
With Sheeran’s name in the writing credits, the legal drama eventually fizzled without financial bloodshed, allowing the track to reach number 9 on Billboard’s Hot 100. The whole saga reminds us that today’s songwriters need attorneys on speed-dial like 90s rappers needed bodyguards. Despite everything, Blanco keeps architecting chart dominance with music’s elite, proving that in pop music, survival itself is the ultimate flex.
18. Forget About Us – Perrie
The solo debut—that terrifying career bungee jump from group safety net to individual spotlight—remains pop music’s most revealing ritual. Perry Edwards, shedding her girl group identity to emerge as simply “Perry,” chose “Forget About Us” as her reinvention vehicle. The track began as Sheeran’s rough sketch before Edwards transformed it into emotional autobiography.
She didn’t just perform Sheeran’s creation—she colonized it with her lived experience, particularly the aftermath of tabloid-documented heartbreak. Her adaptations infused the song with that specific melancholy that comes from having your personal pain live-tweeted by strangers. The collaboration demonstrates how songs can become therapy sessions with a beat, where performers turn someone else’s words into their own healing journey.
17. Thursday – Jess Glynne
In an industry built on filtered perfection and strategic jawlines, authenticity hits like a surprise inheritance from a relative you didn’t know you had. Jess Glynne’s “Thursday,” co-written with Sheeran and Steve Mac, delivers a radical message wrapped in deceptively simple production: you deserve to exist without filters or makeup—not just on designated self-care days, but whenever you damn well please.
The resulting anthem reached top-three UK chart position while creating space for listeners to breathe in their imperfections. It’s like the anti-Instagram filter in song form, a rare pop commodity that acknowledges societal pressure without offering fortune-cookie solutions. The track continues generating conversations about authenticity in a world where everyone’s face is one slider adjustment away from uncanny valley territory.
16. Make It Right – BTS
The cultural bridge-building between K-pop and Western songwriters represents globalization’s most fascinating musical experiment since MTV tricked teenagers into watching Bolivian pan flute ensembles at 3 AM. “Make It Right” emerged from a mutual admiration society, with BTS and Sheeran exchanging social media valentine’s before putting that chemistry on wax.
This collaboration, later followed by “Permission to Dance,” signals how popular music increasingly treats borders like suggestions rather than rules. The resulting cultural exchange produces something neither tradition could create alone—like if tacos and sushi had a delicious baby that somehow improved on both parents. These partnerships demonstrate how musical evolution happens at the boundaries where different sounds collide, not in carefully preserved genre museums.
15. Your Song – Rita Ora
Some tracks arrive with a built-in dopamine trigger that hits before the first chorus even drops. Rita Ora’s “Your Song” delivers this instant mood boost, showcasing Sheeran and Steve Mac’s ability to craft joy in audio form. As Phoenix’s lead single, it demonstrates how deceptively simple production often creates maximum emotional impact.
The track’s Caribbean-tinged melody propelled it into top-10 territory across multiple markets with its fresh approach. Sheeran and Ora’s pre-existing friendship infused their collaboration with organic chemistry that listeners can feel through their earbuds. For artists hunting that elusive combination of commercial appeal and genuine emotion, the formula isn’t complicated—the strongest musical partnerships form naturally through respect rather than being forced together like awkward blind dates at industry mixers.
14. Strip That Down – Liam Payne
The boy band solo launch requires calculations more complex than NASA uses for Mars landings: retain enough familiar sound to keep your built-in audience while establishing sufficient distance to be taken seriously as an individual. Liam Payne navigated this tightrope after One Direction’s hiatus, enlisting Sheeran to help draft his declaration of independence.
“Strip That Down” answered with R&B sensibilities and early-2000s nostalgia, cleverly sampling Shaggy’s “It Wasn’t Me” for multi-generational appeal. Quavo’s feature added hip-hop credentials—that ultimate currency for male pop stars seeking to shed their manufactured image. The contrast with One Direction’s stadium anthems was deliberate, offering something designed for darkened clubs rather than illuminated arenas. Sheeran’s guidance helped launch Payne’s solo identity without a trace of his songwriting fingerprints visible to casual listeners.
13. Pointless – Lewis Capaldi
Collaboration between established artists creates fascinating power dynamics rarely visible to Spotify scrollers. Lewis Capaldi—Scotland’s heartbreak troubadour with his own impressive commercial track record—admitted feeling impostor syndrome when joining Sheeran, Johnny McDaid, and Steve Mac on their partially-completed track in 2022.
Despite dominating charts himself, Capaldi worried he couldn’t match his collaborators’ foundation. This creative anxiety mirrors what so many artists experience but rarely admit publicly—success often amplifies self-doubt rather than eliminating it. Pushing through his hesitation, Capaldi added the chorus and middle eight, personalizing lyrics to make them authentically his. The resulting “Pointless” leveraged his emotional delivery while incorporating Sheeran’s accessible poignancy, demonstrating how creative partnerships at their best create space for artistic vulnerability that solo work rarely allows.
12. Woman Like Me – Little Mix
The assumption that empowerment anthems must exclusively come from female creators reflects our persistent gendered expectations about who can authentically discuss the female experience—like assuming only former presidents can write about politics. “Woman Like Me” challenges this premise, having emerged from a session including Sheeran alongside Nicki Minaj and Steve Mac.
Originally destined for another artist, the track found its perfect incarnation with Little Mix, who adapted it to align with their established messaging. Their interpretation transformed a writing room concept into a cultural statement celebrating feminine strength. The layered backing vocals create a sonic representation of collective power, supporting its message of solidarity. The collaboration demonstrates how a song’s ultimate impact often emerges not from its origins but from performers who breathe life into its potential.
11. 2002 – Anne-Marie
Nostalgia works as pop music’s emotional cheat code, turning shared cultural references into instant connection tools like WiFi passwords to our collective youth. Anne-Marie’s “2002” weaponizes millennial memory with surgical precision, co-created by Sheeran, Julia Michaels, Benny Blanco, and Steve Mac.
The songwriting began before Anne-Marie entered the picture, but her studio contributions shaped it into a personal time capsule that still feels universally accessible—even to listeners who weren’t alive in 2002. The lyrics reference iconic pop songs from the era, creating a meta-commentary on how music shapes our memories. The production’s warm tones complement its thematic nostalgia, crafting an experience like finding a forgotten photo album that suddenly unlocks an entire summer you thought you’d forgotten.
10. I Was Made For Loving You – Tori Kelly
Professional admiration often seeds the most fruitful musical partnerships, like dating someone after years of friendship. Tori Kelly’s respect for Sheeran’s work ethic created the foundation for their collaboration on her debut album, Unbreakable Smile, in 2015.
Sheeran contributed both writing and vocals to “I Was Made For Loving You,” creating a gentle acoustic framework that discusses destiny without resorting to greeting card platitudes. The partnership highlighted Kelly’s extraordinary vocal control while drawing mainstream attention during a crucial career-building period. Their collaboration demonstrates how thoughtful partnerships elevate both artists’ work, particularly when built on mutual respect rather than algorithmic streaming strategies designed by marketing departments with spreadsheets instead of instruments.
9. All About It – Hoodie Allen
The recording studio sometimes functions as both creative laboratory and overdue friendship reunion rolled into one expensive hourly rental. New York rapper Hoodie Allen and Sheeran maintained personal connection for years before transforming their offstage camaraderie into recorded collaboration.
Their chemistry translated into remarkable efficiency, reportedly completing “All About It” faster than most people decide what to order for lunch. The resulting track balances Allen’s verbal dexterity with Sheeran’s melodic instincts, creating an upbeat hybrid that showcases both artists. The accompanying visual content embraced playful humor rather than manufactured coolness, reflecting the authentic friendship underlying their partnership and proving that personal connection often creates artistic authenticity that listeners instinctively recognize—like dogs who somehow know which humans don’t like them.
8. Dark Times – The Weeknd
Genre-blurring collaborations create sonic territory neither artist might discover independently, like explorers from different continents meeting in uncharted waters. “Dark Times” merges The Weeknd’s atmospheric R&B with Sheeran’s songwriter sensibilities, producing something outside both artists’ familiar territories.
For Beauty Behind the Madness, The Weeknd assembled an impressive creative roster, but Sheeran’s contribution stands apart through both writing and performance elements. The track delivers appropriately shadowy lyricism against stripped-back production. Though receiving less promotional attention than other album tracks, “Dark Times” demonstrates both artists’ willingness to step beyond established formulas. The song remains a favorite among listeners who appreciate when artists prioritize creative exploration over commercial calculation—the musical equivalent of a secret menu item at your favorite restaurant.
7. Old School Love – Lupe Fiasco
Hip-hop’s relationship with its own history creates fascinating tension between innovation and tradition, like a family trying to update holiday recipes without angering grandma. “Old School Love” navigates this space beautifully, with Lupe Fiasco’s track featuring piano-driven production that perfectly supports his reflective flow as he honors the genre’s golden era.
Sheeran delivers a hook bridging hip-hop and pop sensibilities, creating something that respects tradition while remaining accessible to contemporary audiences. Their partnership emerged from mutual artistic appreciation, demonstrating how cross-genre respect often creates the most interesting collaborative moments. This musical love letter celebrates late ’80s and early ’90s hip-hop culture, honoring technical prowess and boundary-pushing production while showing how these elements continue shaping today’s sonic landscape.
6. Everything Has Changed – Taylor Swift
Career trajectories often hinge on singular moments where exposure exponentially amplifies talent, like a rocket using Earth’s gravity to slingshot toward distant planets. Sheeran’s collaboration with Taylor Swift represents exactly this kind of critical inflection point that altered his commercial orbit.
Swift’s fourth album, Red, featured “Everything Has Changed,” which Sheeran co-wrote and performed as a duet. The track connected globally while introducing him to Swift’s massive audience. His subsequent opening slot on her Red Tour exposed him to arena-sized crowds across North America, accelerating his global recognition beyond organic growth timelines. While already established in the UK, this strategic collaboration functioned as a career nitro-boost in crucial markets. The song’s enduring popularity demonstrates how aligned creative energies create something greater than either artist could produce individually.
5. Say You Love Me – Jessie Ware
Creating emotionally resonant music that satisfies both critical and commercial expectations requires balance as delicate as assembling a house of cards in a room full of ceiling fans. Jessie Ware’s “Say You Love Me” offers a masterclass in this precise calibration.
Sheeran collaborated with Benny Blanco and Ben Ash on this powerful track, helping establish its emotional framework while creating space for Ware’s distinctive vocal approach. The song walks the tightrope between personal specificity and universal themes, reaching number 22 on UK charts while earning critical respect—that rare sweet spot where artistic integrity and commercial viability overlap like a musical Venn diagram. The collaboration demonstrates how diverse creative perspectives often produce music that resonates across demographic boundaries rather than being confined to genre-specific audience silos.
4. Tattoo – Hilary Duff
Artist evolution requires shedding established identity layers to reveal new creative possibilities, like a snake that must temporarily become vulnerable to grow. Hilary Duff’s transition from her Disney-adjacent persona required partnerships that could facilitate transformation without alienating her existing audience.
Sheeran’s contribution to “Tattoo” reportedly took mere minutes to complete, including backing vocals that added emotional texture to the track. The resulting song presented a more vulnerable Duff, exploring the lasting imprints left by relationships—a metaphorical tattoo that remains after the connection ends. This collaboration represented perfect timing for her artistic growth, blending raw emotion with accessible melody in ways that influenced her subsequent direction while helping reposition her in the adult contemporary landscape without triggering the career whiplash that plagues former child stars.
3. Cold Water – Major Lazer
Billboard Hot 100 dominance requires precision-engineered hooks and strategic collaborator selection—like assembling the Avengers but for three-minute pop songs. “Cold Water” reached number two through its masterful fusion of EDM production and pop accessibility.
The track’s impressive commercial performance stemmed from multiple factors, including lyrics balancing emotional vulnerability with dancefloor energy. This collaboration united Sheeran, Benny Blanco, Major Lazer, Justin Bieber, and MØ—essentially the musical equivalent of an all-star game roster. Their combined perspectives created something transcending genre classification, dominating streaming platforms and radio while demonstrating how contemporary hit-making increasingly resembles diplomatic relations between previously separated musical territories united by a common goal of earworm creation.
2. Little Things – One Direction
The transformation from competent to exceptional often comes through subtle enhancements rather than complete reinvention, like the difference between a good meal and an unforgettable one often comes down to seasoning. Sheeran’s contribution to One Direction’s “Little Things” exemplifies this principle perfectly.
Having previously crafted “Moments” for their debut, Sheeran reunited with the group for their sophomore album, creating something carrying his unmistakable stylistic signature throughout. The resulting track blends pop accessibility with folk-influenced sincerity, expanding One Direction’s territory beyond their initial positioning. The song quickly became a fan favorite, showcasing a more emotionally mature approach that helped them begin transitioning from teen sensation to legitimate musical force. This collaboration demonstrates how thoughtful partnership creates artistic growth opportunities for established acts without alienating their core audience—pop music’s most delicate balancing act.
1. Love Yourself – Justin Bieber
Commercial dominance and critical respect rarely occupy the same space in pop music, like finding a parking spot directly in front of your destination in downtown Manhattan. “Love Yourself” threads this impossible needle, becoming one of 2016’s global best-sellers while earning rare critical acknowledgment through Grammy nominations.
Producer Benny Blanco shaped the song alongside Sheeran and Bieber, creating something deliberately stripped-down compared to contemporary production standards. This minimalist approach amplified the emotional directness of lyrics addressing self-respect and relationship boundaries. Beyond industry accolades, the song connected with listeners navigating their own relationship complexities, demonstrating how seemingly simple compositions often create the most powerful emotional resonance when crafted with precision. Sometimes the quietest songs speak the loudest.
