Ed Sheeran, Ishawna Are Teaming Up For A New Dancehall Song
Less than a month after Ed Sheeran confessed that he was smitten with Ishawna’s Equal Rights, a remix of his hit Dancehall-infused pop song Shape of You, the Dancehall diva has revealed that they have collaborated on an upcoming track.
“I was trying soooo hard to keep this a secret but since Ed Sheeran has let the cat out of the bag, it’s only right I share the good news!!!!😩😆😭😁🙌🏽 It’s official guys!!! Ed sheeran & ishawna collab coming soon🎶🔥🔥🔥,” the Kingston native posted on her Instagram page on Tuesday, November 9.
Ishawna’s Equal Rights remix was released in 2017, after Sheeran’s Shape Of You peaked at No. 1 on the singles charts of 34 countries, including the US Billboard Hot 100. Shape Of You, with its one-drop Reggae/Dancehall riddim, went on to win the Grammy Award for Best Pop Solo Performance in 2018, and is currently RIAA certified Diamond in the US.
Tagging Sheeran, Ishawna added: “@teddysphotos I just want to say THANK YOU FOR EVERYTHING!!! The past few weeks have been magical!✨Nothing but good vibes and positive energy! 😊”
“The universe brought us together through music and it’s an absolute HONOUR to be working with you, grateful is an understatement! Thank you for trusting me, just as much as I trust you!!!! 🙏🏽😊💕. I can’t wait for the world to hear what we have in store‼️ 🇯🇲 🇬🇧 🌎” she continued.
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Ishawna’s announcement came after the British pop star, in an interview with the Halfcast Podcast, mentioned that they had been working together. The interview was, according to Sheeran, aimed at discussing “everything over the last 15 years” of his career.
During the portion of the discussion which was shared by Ishawna, Sheeran stated that they were doing some work together which would see him deejaying, as she had urged, and that she actually taught him to sing in Patois.
“Ishawna’s got me singing Patois with her. I was like ‘I don’t know’ and she was like ‘trust me. Kingston slang; they’re gonna f-ckin love it’,” Sheeran told the host.
On Tuesday Ishawna got a huge commendation From Downsound producer Cordell Skatta Burrell, who unlike most of the men in the music industry had supported her Equal Rights song from day one.
“From dreams to reality 🔥🔥🔥,” Skatta noted in response to Ishawna’s post.
In an interview with Qmusic Nederland, in mid-October, a blushing Sheeran had commented on Ishawna’s remix, pointing out that he found her lyrics alluring, before he went onto sing them word for word.
“What I like about Shape of You is that anywhere I go in the world, people know that song and there’s so many remixes of it… I was in the Caribbean and I heard, like, a totally different song,” he told the host Domien Verschuuren.
“It’s really, really filthy, but she’s just singing about her man going down on her, but it was all over the Caribbean,” the Briton added. “I’ve listened to it so many times… Even when she says, ‘If you want head, my yute yuh haffi suck this’, it’s so good.”
Upon learning of Sheeran being enraptured with the lyrics of Equal Rights, Ishawna had taken to Instagram to give a background as to how it came into being.
“When I recorded Equal Rights it was never meant to be a “real” song. I was just so in love with Ed Shereen’s song and the riddim just moved me in a way I couldn’t explain. I’ve always wanted to touch on the topic and I just knew it was time. The song went viral immediately, yet it wasn’t on any streaming platforms,” she had noted.
She has also pointed out that back then, she did not have clearance to use the beat of Sheeran’s song and as a consequence released the track on a modified version to avoid any copyright issues. She also noted that the song achieved success without a big budget nor fake views or streams.
Equal Rights, which centered on oral sex being performed by a man on Ishawna, had come in for much condemnation by many music selectors who refused to play it, among them her ex and father of her son, Foota Hype.
At the time Foota had said that he was sorry for their son Ishawna’s whom he was sure would be mocked by his peers, due to the lyrical content of his mother’s song.