VH1, MTV screen Sheeran’s story live

Music-based US cablenet VH1 and MTV in the UK and Latin America have commissioned independent UK prodco JA Digital to produce a live television event starring pop star Ed Sheeran.

The event will broadcast on VH1 in the US, MTV and VH1 in the UK and MTV in Brazil and will be the first-ever live version of VH1’s acclaimed Storytellers music franchise.

Ed Sheeran Storytellers Live! will see the six-time Grammy-nominated artist perform in Dublin as well as sharing personal stories from his life that have inspired his chart-topping songs.

The event will be filmed in front of a live audience at Whelan’s, an intimate venue where Sheeran, then aged 11, saw Damien Rice perform live, inspiring his journey into the music business.

This is the first time VH1 and MTV have shown a broadcast live, simulcast in several different territories. The show will also be streamed live outside the UK, Ireland, France and Morocco online and on the VH1 App.

Paul Dugdale will direct for JA Digital while Bill Flanagan, Lee Rolontz and Sandy Alouete are executive producers for VH1.

JA previously produced The Rolling Stones: Sweet Summer Sun for BBC1 and Coldplay: Ghost Stories for Sky Arts.