Why Ed Sheeran’s ‘Old Phone’ Promo Is One of His Smartest Moves Yet

How a forgotten device, unseen memories, and a dose of star power helped Ed Sheeran turn nostalgia into top level music marketing.

Via @teddysoldphone on Instagram - Justin Bieber and ed Sheeran, captioned “2014, found out bieber really liked my music, sent him love yourself soon after”

If you're a true Ed Sheeran fan, you’ll know he ditched his phone in 2015 to unplug from the noise and live more intentionally. But now, nearly a decade later, Sheeran’s return to that long-abandoned device has sparked not only a wave of nostalgia, but also one of the most clever and heartfelt promo campaigns we’ve seen from any artist in years.

Via @teddysoldphone on instagram Ed Sheeran and Taylor Swift

To launch his latest single Old Phone, Ed did something totally unexpected: he created a new Instagram account, @teddysphotosoldphone, and filled it with grainy photos, blurry gig snaps, screenshots of silly old tweets, and personal throwbacks straight from that dusty device. The kind of stuff only hardcore fans would remember, and they’re loving it. The account already has over 300,000 followers and counting.

The charm isn’t in the quality, it’s in the realness. The photos are pixelated, the filters are early-2010s cringe, and unfinished old lyrics. It’s a world away from today’s perfectly curated celeb content, and that’s exactly why people are connecting with it. It feels like Ed has opened up a time capsule just for us.

But the campaign isn’t just about throwbacks. The song itself is unexpectedly emotional. When Ed turned on that old phone again, he found messages from ex-girlfriends, friends he’d lost touch with, and tragically, friends who are no longer here, including Jamal Edwards, the music entrepreneur who helped launch Ed’s career - all of which inspired the single.

The timing, too, is brilliant. The old phone was only back in Ed’s hands because of his recent plagiarism court case, where it was handed over as evidence. Instead of letting that be a throwaway detail, he turned it into a whole creative moment, flipping a stressful situation into a heartfelt song and viral campaign.

And of course, the reposts from stars like Niall Horan have only helped fuel the buzz, giving the whole thing more visibility. It’s no surprise Old Phone has already earned Sheeran his 43rd UK Top 10 single.

For the music video, Ed Sheeran dropped more than a visual, he created a moment. He threw a one-night-only gig in a pop-up pub in Ipswich (Massachusetts, far from the tractor boys of Suffolk) and invited fans to get in by submitting something meaningful from their own old phones whether that be a photo, video, or message that really meant something to them. This resulted in a night full of music, dancing, and a few tears, all captured on film to bring that nostalgia-fuelled feeling to the screen, and honestly, it might be one of his most personal videos yet!

In a sea of polished PR rollouts, this one feels deeply personal, slightly chaotic in the best way, and totally authentic. With a few blurry photos, cringey selfies and a whole lot of heart, Ed Sheeran reminded everyone why he’s still one of the best storytellers in the game!