It's a day of sorrow for the Ed Sheeran fandom as the 24-year-old musician has announced that he would be on a temporary social media hiatus.
The singer-songwriter took to Instagram to write a note to his fans and his family regarding his decision.
Sheeran began the short letter by laying down how much of an "amazing ride" he's had for the past five years.
In 2011, Sheeran's song "The A Team" made its debut, entering the UK Singles Chart at No. 3 and selling almost 60,000 copies during its first week alone. Since then, he has been unstoppable, winning the Brit Award for Album of the Year for "X" and the Ivor Novello Award for Songwriter of the Year.
However, in all this, the British star claims that he has found himself "seeing the world through a screen and not my eyes."
To the shock of his 5.5 million Instagram followers, 16.1 million Twitter followers and 13.8 million Facebook fans, Sheeran announced that he would be using this spare time to "travel the world and see everything I missed."
Fans can still catch Sheeran soon enough at the 58th Grammy Awards to be held on Feb. 15 because his song "Thinking Out Loud" is nominated for Song of the Year, Record of the Year and Best Pop Solo Performance.
Sheeran will also take this time to undergo an operation meant to repair his burst eardrum. He sustained this injury after jumping off a yacht.
Sheeran closed the notice, but not before teasing fans with his upcoming third album and saying that it is the "best thing I have made thus far."
Fans poured out their messages for the musician, many in melancholy, but nonetheless seeing where he was coming from. "Well Deserved Rest Mate + CANNOT WAIT for 3rd album," replied UK music station Capital FM.
@edsheeran Well Deserved Rest Mate + CANNOT WAIT for 3rd album @romankemp — Capital (@CapitalOfficial) December 13, 2015
Fans and fellow artists also responded with gratitude for Sheeran's music and gave their support, encouraging him to pursue new experiences. Loyal fan Martin Cox commended the artist for "still being a regular guy" while folk rock band Saints of Eirinn thanked Sheeran for giving "hope and boundless inspiration for the future generation."
@edsheeran Thank u for all the shows, the music, & still being a regular guy! Enjoy ur own time, living new experiences. See u in 9 months
— Martin 'Snazzy' Cox (@MartinCox0155) December 13, 2015
@edsheeran You give us hope and boundless inspiration for the future generation. Thank You. — Saints of Eirinn (@SaintsofEirinn) December 13, 2015
Photo: Mark Kent | Flickr
