Ed Sheeran's tattoo artist defends himself for calling the singer's tattoos 's---'
- Singer Ed Sheeran has received some criticism for his numerous tattoos, and his tattoo artist is sick of the backlash.
- "The whole thing has been blown out of hand," tattooist Kevin Paul told Insider. "It's got nothing to do with anybody else what he gets tattooed on his body."
- Paul had previously told the Mirror that some of Sheeran's tattoos were "s---" and "not very good."
- "But every single thing that he's got is personal to him," Paul said in the same interview.
- Paul also said that working with Sheeran is one of the "best" and "worst" things to happen to his career, and told the Mirror that it may have cost him some clients.
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Ed Sheeran's tattoo artist recently spoke out about his experiences tattooing the world-famous singer — and said on Wednesday that the backlash over Sheeran's tattoos was "stupid and pointless."
"Ed knows that most people don't think his tattoos are great designs, but they're what he really wanted," tattooist Kevin Paul told Insider in an email.
"It's got nothing to do with anybody else what he gets tattooed on his body," Paul added.
Paul recently made headlines for revealing in an interview with the Mirror published Wednesday that he wasn't the biggest fan of Sheeran's tattoos, even going so far as to call them "s---." But Paul told Insider that he feels people were blowing his comments out of proportion.
"I think it's stupid and pointless," Paul said of the criticism. "The tattoos are years old and everybody has [already] seen them."
During his interview with the Mirror, Paul revealed he frequently jokes with Sheeran about his tattoos, leading to some renewed criticism of the singer's ink.
"His tattoos aren't very good," he told the Mirror. "I take the piss out of Ed all the time, when I'm with him, that [his tattoos] are s---."
Paul went on to say that "every single" tattoo Sheeran, 28, has gotten contains a "personal" meaning to the singer. For instance, both Sheeran and former "One Direction" singer Harry Styles both have the animated character Pingu tattooed on them, since the musicians both liked the cartoon as a child, said Paul.
"It does look s---, but it's what they wanted, it's a personal memory and it means something to them," Paul added.
The tattoo artist also told the Mirror that he has lost clients after working with the famous singer.
"I was a big, massive artist doing 3D work and winning awards. And then all of a sudden, you end up doing Pingu the penguin and f------ gingerbread men on pop stars," Paul said in the interview, referencing Sheeran's notorious gingerbread man tattoo.
"And that client base just dies off, but the doorways it has opened for me are much bigger," he continued.
"The thing with Ed, he is the best thing to happen to my career and the worst," Paul told the Mirror. And despite his earlier statements, Paul said he didn't regret working with the singer, "as it's changed my life and opened amazing doors for me to do great things."
Sheeran is known for his numerous tattoos and has approximately 60 (or more) inked on his body. The singer's left arm reportedly features tattoos that relate to his professional accomplishments, while his right arm contains images that represent moments from his personal life.
His tattoos range from the aforementioned gingerbread man and Pingu the penguin to more heartfelt images. One of Sheeran's earlier tattoos featured lyrics from musician Bon Iver, written in the artist's handwriting.
"everything that happens is from now on"
In 2013, the singer got a tattoo of a family tree on his right arm.
And in 2015, Sheeran got a huge lion tattooed on his chest, in celebration of selling out England's Wembley Stadium for three nights in a row.
Sheeran, for his part, has been a good sport about criticisms of his tattoos.
"[People say] 'Well, what about when you're an old man?' I think I'll look f------ cool when I'm old," Sheeran said in a video for GQ.
Representatives for Sheeran didn't immediately respond to Insider's requests for comment.
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