Sheeran, Bieber join forces on ‘Don’t Care’

ASIDE from coming out with mega hits like 2017’s “Shape of You” which went number one in 34 countries, English crooner Ed Sheeran is also known for a string of hits done in collaboration with singers like Beyoncé (2017’s “Perfect”) and now he has teamed up with Canadian singer Justin Bieber for the song, “I Don’t Care” which launched on Friday on Spotify.

This came less than two months after Mr. Bieber told fans he was stepping back from new music to deal with personal issues,

Both singers, who each made news in the past year by getting married at secret weddings, had teased fans on social media last week about the track, in which they sing about feeling out of place at a party but finding support in someone close.

The song, described as an “anti-party anthem” by The Atlantic, is the second time the singers have teamed up since 2015’s “Love Yourself” which was part of Mr. Bieber’s PURPOSE: The Movement album.

“Fidgety and merry, with a darting melody and twee whimpers, the music captures a sense of awkwardness that could give way to abandon. It’d also make for a pretty catchy loading-screen soundtrack to some Nintendo Switch game that the guys would rather be playing,” Spencer Kornhaber wrote in his music review for The Atlantic.

But beyond the release of their new song, both singers are known for putting out hit after hit: music streaming service Spotify noted in a release that between the two, they’ve released 430 songs (including originals, covers, and collaborations) on the service and their songs have been streamed more than 27 billion times and have been a part of 247 user- and Spotify-created playlists.

Among the top 10 countries that love the music of both singers is the Philippines, placing eighth on lists that show the countries which stream the singers the most. Topping the list is the US followed by the United Kingdom and Brazil.

Spotify also noted that the most streamed Sheeran collaboration was his Beyoncé collaboration “Perfect Duet,” followed by the “Shape of You” remix by rapper Stormzy, while Mr. Bieber’s most successful collaborations on the service were “Friends” with American singer BloodPop, followed by “No Brainer,” a song he did with Chance the Rapper, DJ Khaled, and Quavo.

In March, Mr. Bieber told fans he was “focused on repairing some… deep rooted issues” and was putting new music on hold. A month later, he surprised revelers at the Coachella music festival by joining singer Ariana Grande on stage for an unplanned performance of his hit single “Sorry,” after which he said a new album would come “soon.”

His last album came out in 2015. Last year he released the singe “No Brainer.”

Mr. Sheeran’s last album Divide, released in 2017 and featuring hit singles “Shape of You” and “Perfect,” topped charts around the world. — ZB Chua with Reuters