Ed Sheeran accused of "ripping off" The Weeknd with Bad Habits sound and aesthetic
25 June 2021, 16:01
Ed Sheeran accused of ripping off The Weeknd with Bad Habits
People are calling out Ed Sheeran for copying The Weeknd's After Hours campaign with his new era.
Ed Sheeran is coming under fire over the similarities between his new single 'Bad Habits' and The Weeknd's After Hours era.
Ed Sheeran is back. After his 2019 collaborations project and a one-off single in 2020, the 30-year-old has returned with his first solo lead single since 'Shape of You' in 2017. 'Bad Habits' is the first taste of Ed's upcoming, fifth studio album, which is rumoured to be called - (Minus), and it's already hit the top of streaming and download charts all around the world.
However, in spite of its instant success, Ed is also being called out over accusations that 'Bad Habits' copies The Weeknd.
READ MORE: Olivia Rodrigo accused of "ripping off" Pom Pom Squad with Sour album visuals
Compare Ed Sheeran's new sound with The Weeknd below.
Ed Sheeran - Bad Habits [Official Video]
The Weeknd - Blinding Lights (Official Video)
As soon as Ed began releasing promo images for 'Bad Habits' this month, fans noticed similarities between Ed's brand new aesthetic and the creative direction of The Weeknd's After Hours album. Not only does Ed wear a similar statement suit to The Weeknd, but the 'Bad Habits' imagery is also very dark and horror inspired, just like The Weeknd's After Hours.
Now, the song is out and fans have noticed that it also references '80s music in a similar way to The Weeknd's hit 'Blinding Lights'. Not to mention, the vampires at night visual is much more akin to The Weeknd's work than Ed's previous output.
One person tweeted: "ed sheeran totally stole his new aesthetic from the weekend". Another person added: "Ed Sheeran really ripped the whole Weeknd After Hours aesthetic".
ed sheeran totally stole his new aesthetic from the weeknd
— hayley “spongebob coldplaypants” st. james 👽📻 (@hayleystjames) June 23, 2021
ed sheeran is so lame for stealing the weeknd’s entire look
— river (@kissmeriver) June 17, 2021
y’all see what happened when men aren’t humbled….we get ed sheeran looking at the weeknd and saying to himself “i can do that too”
— kathleen (@fordhoIden) June 22, 2021
Radio just played Ed Sheeran’s new song and everyone thought it was The Weeknd pic.twitter.com/Rve0EkWOwy
— My Name Is James (@_JamesGtfo) June 25, 2021
Ed Sheeran really ripped the whole Weeknd After Hours aesthetic for his worse lead single by far ☹️☹️☹️☹️☹️ https://t.co/hH19uNG3Ua
— avvmxx 🦞 (@avvmxx) June 25, 2021
So Ed Sheeran decided to do a white version of The Weeknd’s Blinding Lights with his bad habits video and wow did he fail spectacularly… yikes
— Izzy ✡︎ תקוה #FreeMotasem (@judaicbxtch) June 25, 2021
That new Ed sheeran sounds like a bad weeknd impersonation
— Slime Newton—Fan Account (@slimenewton_) June 25, 2021
As it stands, neither Ed nor The Weeknd have responded to the comparisons. We shall update you if they do.
