Ed Sheeran vowed to quit drugs in wake of best friend Jamal Edwards’ death

Ed Sheeran vowed to quit drugs in the wake of the death of his best friend Jamal Edwards.

The A Team singer, 32, was so shattered by the February 2022 passing of music producer Jamal — who died aged 31 after a cardiac arrest brought on by cocaine and alcohol — that he decided never to “touch (drugs) again”.

He told Rolling Stone: “I would never, ever, ever touch anything again, because that’s how Jamal died.

“And that’s just disrespectful to his memory to even, like, go near.”

Ed added about falling into drug use: “I remember just being at a festival and being like, ‘Well, if all of my friends do it, it can’t be that bad.’

“And then sort of dabbling. And then it just turns into a habit that you do once a week and then once a day and then, like, twice a day and then, like, without booze. It just became bad vibes.”

Ed, who has daughters Lyra, two, and 10-month-old Jupiter with his 30-year-old wife Cherry Seaborn, also said he stopped drinking hard liquor due to a wake-up call from Cherry.

He added: “I was always a drinker. I didn’t touch any sort of like, drug, until I was 24.

“Two months before Lyra was born, Cherry said, ‘If my water break, do you really want someone else to drive me to the hospital?’

“Because I was just drinking a lot. And that’s when it clicked. I was like, ‘No, actually, I really don’t.’ And I don’t ever want to be p***** holding my kid. Ever, ever.

“Having a couple of beers is one thing. But having a bottle of vodka is another thing. It’s just a realisation of, ‘I’m getting into my thirties. Grow up! You’ve partied, you’ve had this experience. Be happy with that and just be done.’

“I love red wine, and I love beer. I don’t know any old rockers that aren’t alcoholics or sober, and I didn’t want to be either.”