The Offspring Helped Ed Sheeran Fulfill ‘Childhood Dream’ With Surprise BottleRock Fest Appearance

Ed Sheeran‘s childhood dream came true over the weekend. The singer and songwriter joined the Offspring for a surprise appearance at BottleRock Festival in Napa, California, where they were both booked to perform on Sunday, May 26. Standing beside the band he has long-admired would be thrilling enough on its own, but the rock collective sweetened the deal when they had him join for “Million Miles Away,” a particularly significant song for Sheeran.

“The first album I ever bought was the @offspring – Conspiracy of One. I used to pretend to be in their band in the mirror and sing along to the album when I was 9, mostly to their song Million Miles Away as it was the first song of theirs I heard,” the singer shared on Instagram. The caption was listed beneath a video compiling footage from throughout the day, from their trailer rehearsals to their grand delivery to a thousands-deep audience on the Verizon Stage.

“I mentioned it in an interview and Noodles / Dexter got in touch with me when we found out we were all playing the same festival, to see if I wanted to get on stage and sing it,” Sheeran continued. “It was an instant yes obvz. Really felt like living out a childhood dream thank you for having me up there guys. Music is a wild ride, every day I’m so grateful to be living my dream in reality. Hope you enjoy the vid.”

Sheeran wore a black Offspring t-shirt for the performance, but he carries the band with him even when he isn’t in their merch. Backstage, the singer snapped a photo with the band gathered around his tattoo of their fiery skull logo.

“What a pleasure it was to have Ed Sheeran join us for “Million Miles Away” at @bottlerocknapa!” the band shared on Instagram. “We loved hearing about how ‘Conspiracy of One’ was the very first album that he ever bought and he even showed us his Offspring tattoo!!!”

From Rolling Stone US.