British singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran is set to launch his own recording label, says Capital FM.
The "Thinking Out Loud" singer detailed his plans in an interview with UK's The Sun. The imprint will be housed by Warner Music for the mean time but Sheeran says he'll "get the rights back in about ten years."
The 23-year-old singer shared his excitement about the project, saying: "The door has now been opened, I've set up the label and I'm going to start signing people."
He also revealed the idea of putting up his own recording outfit occurred to him when he referred Passenger to his label and received a negative response. "The first time I properly thought about it was when I took Passenger on tour for two years," he said.
"I took him into my record company and played them the record but they didn't get it. Then I was too busy on my own stuff and let it slide. Then he had a worldwide no. 1. After that, everyone was like, 'Maybe Ed does know what he's talking about.'"
He said he would put his attention on the label after he goes on tour. In mid-October, Sheeran expressed his intention to take a break from music. "I haven't had any time off since before I signed my record deal and I want some! I'll do what I enjoy and it won't feel like work," he told The Sun (quoted via Gigwise).
Sheeran, who plans to "break artists" into the music industry through his label, recently spoke of the lack of support amongst artists in the business.
"The music industry is so overcrowded and competitive these days that everyone is fighting for a spot at the top," he told Contact Music. "No one wants to jump up on stage with another or help each other out. It's nice when that happens."