What the Ed Sheeran and Pokemon GO Collaboration Could Be

Ed Sheeran surprised Pokemon GO fans by teasing an upcoming collaboration with the mobile game, but was scarce on the details.

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Category : Pokemon

When you think about Pokemon GO, Grammy award winning singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran probably isn’t the first person to come to mind. Nobody ever expected to see the musician and mobile game have a business relationship until Sheeran surprised fans by teasing that he is in fact working on a mysterious collab with Pokemon GO.

The announcement, which only showed the logos and the words “coming soon,” automatically raised a lot of eyebrows because the pairing seems so random. Absolutely no information was revealed on what exactly the collaboration is, but it’s actually not as random as it seems. There are a ton of possibilities, and only time will tell what Pokemon GO and Ed Sheeran are planning together.

Ed Sheeran is a Pokemon Fan

At first glance, Ed Sheeran collaborating with Pokemon seems like the most unlikely pairing in the world. However, a lot of fans may not realize that Sheeran is actually a pretty big Pokemon fan. Back in May, he posted a photo of himself sitting next to a giant Snorlax plush, with the caption, “Snorlax knows what’s up.”

In addition to posting Snorlax, Sheeran has also tweeted about Pokemon Black, describing the game as “wicked,” and has commented on how Articuno is his favorite Pokemon. In an older interview, he also referred to the “Legendary Dogs,” Raikou, Entei, and Suicune. Whether or not he actively plays Pokemon GO or any other Pokemon game, it’s clear that he has an affinity for the franchise and knows at least a little bit about it. Sheeran loves using nostalgia in his music, and this collaboration could be yet another nostalgic nod to his past.

What the Ed Sheeran Collaboration Could Look Like

So what exactly could Ed Sheeran bring to Pokemon GO? He released a new album just weeks ago, so the collaboration could feature some of the music and artwork from that. There are a few upbeat songs that might make for good Pokemon battle background music, and the paint-splattered butterfly album artwork could be a good opportunity for some fresh character customization. Pokemon GO has done this kind of collab before.

Earlier this year, The North Face and Gucci featured some of their pieces as clothing options in Pokemon GO that could be found at approximately 100 PokeStop locations around the world. The genius of this idea is that 100 locations are a relatively small amount when considering the whole world, so the items are seen as rare and desirable. Many of the PokeStops also correlated with real-life pop-up shops where players could shop for the items in real life. It makes sense from a business standpoint and was fun for players wanting to kick their Pokemon GO fashion game up a notch with designer swag.

However, Ed Sheeran is a musician, not a retail company. He doesn’t have stores scattered throughout the globe selling merchandise. He may have a few pop-up shops now and then to compliment tours, but Ed Sheeran’s product is his music rather than clothing. Still, concert merch or rare items only obtainable through specific PokeStops would be a good way to seamlessly integrate some fun themed content. The collaboration could also manifest as special gym events, augmented reality filters, or even costumed monsters. Pokemon GO is no stranger to special limited-time events, and the Ed Sheeran crossover could certainly be one of them.

Pokemon Has Collaborated with Musicians Before

While Pokemon GO specifically hasn’t partnered with musicians before, this isn’t the first time that The Pokemon Company has collaborated with celebrity artists. Most notably, for Pokemon’s 25th Anniversary, The Pokemon Company collaborated with Katy Perry, Post Malone, and J Balvin on a special Pokemon-themed album.

The collaboration was a big hit and resulted in Pokemon appearing in videos with each of the musicians. The Pokemon Company also released mockup images of the three singers on Pokemon TCG cards. On the cards, Katy Perry is paired with Pikachu, her favorite Pokemon, while J Balvin is depicted with Charizard, and Post Malone is hanging out with both Butterfree and Dragonite. The cards will never actually be produced, to the disappointment of many fans, but the artwork is gorgeous.

While it’s unlikely that Ed Sheeran will be releasing special Pokemon-themed music just for Pokemon GO, it’s not outside the realm of possibility. The collaboration could end up looking similar to the 25th Anniversary collabs. There’s no timeline for when the Ed Sheeran and Pokemon GO collaboration will go live, but there are clearly a ton of different directions that could be explored.

Pokemon GO is available on mobile devices.

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