He said that Sheeran “does rock vocals” on the song, and “really pushes himself”

Dani Filth of Cradle Of Filth and Ed Sheeran perform live. CREDITS:  Venla Shalin/Redferns/Getty (L), Miikka Skaffari/FilmMagic/Getty (R)

Dani Filth has once again spoken about Cradle Of Filth‘s long-awaited collaboration with Ed Sheeran, saying that it is “done and dusted”.

News of the extreme metal band’s unlikely team-up with Sheeran was first shared in 2021. Filth revealed at the time that he had been in touch with the pop star, and that Sheeran had invited him “up to his place”.

He also claimed that the ‘Shape Of You’ artist was a “massive fan” of Cradle Of Filth. “I think the Ed Sheeran collaboration would be great fun,” Filth said at the time. “I think it’d be great if we did it for charity because at least it would bring a bit of credibility to it.”

Now, during an appearance on The Downbeat Podcast, Filth confirmed that the collab was “done and dusted” and said it had come out sounding “great”.

“We did it like two years ago,” he explained (via Metal Sucks). “It was weird because we were planning to do it for about a year and a half.”

Filth continued: “I think our managers got in touch with each other somehow. His manager, Stuart [Camp], used to listen to Coal Chamber [the band featuring Cradle Of Filth manager Dez Fafara] when he was growing up.”

As for why fans have had to wait so long to hear the finished single, he told the podcast: “We didn’t wanna release it back then because we were busy with other things. Then [Sheeran] couldn’t release it because he was doing a bunch of stuff. So it’s just gonna come out when it does. We didn’t wanna put it on the album.”

Filth went on to talk about what the high-profile team-up sounds like, saying: “It’s a brand new Cradle Of Filth song featuring Ed Sheeran, and a lot of it sounds like Ed Sheeran. He’s playing acoustic guitar, he’s singing Ed Sheeran, but a lot of it sounds like us.

“There’s a blast beat, scream. Ed really pushes himself in it as well. He does rock vocals. It’s about affirmation. It’s a bit about self-affirmation. It’s a really good song. Only about a handful of people [have heard it]. My mum hasn’t even heard it.”

You can watch the video interview in full above, where Filth also spoke about Cradle Of Filth’s latest single ‘Malignant Perfection’.

In 2022, Filth explained that Sheeran had “expressed a desire to be part of a song, and we’re currently looking at some options, and that’s about as far as it’s got”. Later that year, Filth told fans that Sheeran had “done some of” the joint track. However, progress was held up due to the birth of the latter’s second child.

Over the Christmas period in 2022, Filth shared a new photo of himself, Sheeran and producer Scott Atkins in a pub together. Filth subsequently set a tentative release date of summer 2023, but the collab failed to materialise.

The singer gave another update last January, hinting that the tune could arrive in early 2025. “But it is what it is,” he added. “Obviously, he’s one of the biggest artists in the world, and we have to abide by his rules […] And obviously we want him in the video, so if that’s gonna happen, we have to release that single with him on next year.”
Ed Sheeran on stage with The Offspring at BottleRock at Napa Valley Expo on May 26, 2024 in Napa, California. (Photo by Jim Bennett/Getty Images)
The idea of the collaboration was first sparked after Sheeran revealed in an interview that he “would not be opposed to” making a metal album. In the same conversation, he shared that he was “really into death metal as a kid”, and had been a big fan of Cradle Of Filth and Slipknot.

Since then, he has joined forces with Bring Me The Horizon at the BRITs 2022 to perform a reworked version of his hit single ‘Bad Habits’. Shortly afterwards, an alternate take on the track featuring both acts was officially released. Sheeran then made a guest appearance with BMTH at Reading 2022 to play the song again.

Last year saw the ‘Autumn Variations’ star collaborate on stage with Limp Bizkit in the Netherlands and perform with The Offspring in the US. In late 2023, he played ‘Love Is Only A Feeling’ with The Darkness, after serving as a surprise opening act for the band in London.

Cradle Of Filth are set to return to the UK this summer for a slot at Download Festival 2025.

Meanwhile, Ed Sheeran recently revealed that he has already finished his next album – which will see him “getting back into big pop”.