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Catch Ed Sheeran’s Pokémon GO app takeover going on now

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Courtesy Niantic

Ed Sheeran isn’t shy about his “massive affinity” of Pokémon and, on Monday, the British singer partnered with the popular Pokémon GO app for an exclusive concert.

Ed started off the performance by declaring how “super excited” he is to be part of the franchise, adding that he’s “been waiting my entire life for this!”

“I, like many people, discovered Pokémon when I was younger. I remember being in primary school in, like, 1997, and Pokémon cards were all the rage,” he reminisced.  Ed began collecting the cards himself even though he “didn’t really know what they were.  I just knew that everyone at school had them!”

The Grammy winner eventually discovered the Pokémon games for the Nintendo Gameboy, saying he would share Pokémon Red with his brother before he was gifted his own copy of Pokémon Yellow on his birthday.

“I just played that for years and years and years,” he admitted. “I didn’t really have many friends in primary school, so the Pokémon were essentially my mates… I’m sure lots of people watching this can relate to that.”

Ed, using just an acoustic guitar, dove into a 20-minute concert and sang a medley of songs off his new album Equals, as well as his biggest hits, which included “Perfect,” “Bad Habits,” “Overpass Graffiti,” “Thinking Out Loud,” “First Times” and “Shivers.”

Concert aside, Ed will serenade those playing the app in real-time by switching up the in-game music.  His new single, “Overpass Graffiti” will play instead of the usual theme song during the overnight hours.

Ed’s favorite Pokémon character, Squirtle — wearing sunglasses — will also appear in the game for players to capture during the multi-day event, which ends Tuesday, November 30, at 1 p.m. PST.

You can learn more on on the app’s blog.

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