Ed Sheeran joining Bruce Springsteen at Qudos Bank Arena after Opera House unlikely

BRUCE Springsteen and Ed Sheeran are in Sydney at the same time under the same promoter so fans are hoping they might get together.

• Springsteen: ‘We stand as embarrassed Americans’
• Ed Sheeran labels social media a ‘toxic wasteland’
• Ed and girlfriend hit Australia on ‘significant break’
• The Springsteen fan who has seen him 41 times

THEY were so close to crossing paths but in the end Bruce Springsteen and Ed Sheeran just couldn’t make their worlds collide in Australia.

A rumoured guest appearance at Springsteen’s Melbourne show on Saturday night didn’t happen and a clash of performance schedules in Sydney means it is unlikely fans of both The Boss and Sheeran will see them share a stage.

While Springsteen performs his first of two Sydney concerts at Qudos Bank Arena in front of almost 18,000 true believers, Sheeran will be showcasing his latest global hits Shape Of You and Castle On the Hill in front of 2000 lucky fans at the Sydney Opera House for Nova’s Red Room.

The Boss is loving his third Australian tour in five years. Picture: Chris Putnam

Ed Sheeran strummed in the rain at Hanging Rock, Macedon, on Sunday. Picture: Jaden Oswald

Both artists are much loved in Australia and been regular visitors over the past five years. They share the same Australian tour promoter Michael Gudinski and both booked gigs at the awe-inspiring Hanging Rock, with Sheeran playing a small radio show on Sunday night and Springstreen returning to the eerie landmark for a sold-out show on Saturday.

And they don’t mind speaking their mind, with The Boss copping flak from supporters of President Donald Trump for opening his AAMI Stadium concert in Melbourne last Thursday with a cover of the 1962 pop hit Don’t Hang Up, a cheeky dig at the heated phone call between the US leader and Australia’s PM Malcolm Turnbull.

The Boss was also trolled by Republican voters for telling the Melbourne crowd “We stand before you, embarrassed Americans, tonight,” Springsteen said to introduce the song, “We’re gonna use this to send a letter back home.”

Bruce Springsteen and the E Street band performing at the Adelaide Entertainment Centre. Picture: Sam Wundke

Sheeran wouldn’t have read the backlash from disgruntled fans and commentators after he kicked off his Australian visit by declaring social media to be a “toxic wasteland”.

The British chartslayer, who has held the top two spots on the Australian charts for the past four weeks, hibernated from social platforms during his gap year and while he has returned to Twitter to push his new tunes and upcoming album Divide, he said he retreated quickly.

Ed Sheeran is steering clear of social media unless he is pushing his tunes. Picture: Eugene Hyland

“Social media is good for pushing my music out there, it’s a brilliant platform. But there’s a large amount of stuff on there that just makes kids feel bad about themselves,” he told News Corp Australia.

While he has confirmed the European and South American legs of his world tour which kicks off in Italy next month, it is believed Sheeran will not hit Australia’s stadiums until 2018.

Guns N’ Roses open their Australian tour in Brisbane on Tuesday. Picture: Supplied

As the Boss and Sheeran perform in Sydney, Guns N’ Roses kick off their Not In This Lifetime tour in Brisbane before it makes its way around the country.

The band will travel around the country by private jet, landing in Sydney later this week for their Friday and Saturday night concerts at ANZ Stadium.

Originally published as Ed Sheeran joining Bruce Springsteen at Qudos Bank Arena after Opera House unlikely