Sophia Michaels
A week after Lil Nas X linked up with League of Legends, Ed Sheeran has turned his love of Pokémon into a new song called “Celestial,” a track written for an upcoming pair of new video games.
“I met the people from Pokémon when I was traveling in Japan, and we joked about me writing a song for them,” Sheeran said last week on social media while he showed off his new tattoo of the character Squirtle.
The joke, however, turned into actual music and a corresponding music video, which combines Sheeran’s everyday life with occasional plunges into the world of Pokémon.
“I’ve played Pokémon since I was in primary school,” Sheeran said Thursday in a statement. “Me and my brother used to have different versions of the games and would trade Pokémon together ‘til we each completed our Pokédex,” Sheeran said in a statement. “I loved the cards, but the games are what I lost myself in. I loved the whole world they created; it kept me distracted if there was negative stuff happening in my life/school that I wanted to avoid. It was a world I could escape into, and I’ve played it ever since.”
“Celestial” will feature in Pokémon Scarlet and Pokémon Violet, two video games coming to the Nintendo Switch on Nov. 18.
Sheeran added, “Even though I’m 31 now, I still own the same Game Boy Color and play Pokémon Yellow or Silver on planes and trains when I’m on tour. It’s such an honor to add a song into a Pokémon game and shoot a nostalgic video too.”
