Irish Eyes [& Ears] Are Smiling

It’s been long known that Ed Sheeran is amazingly attentive to his large and loyal fan base, and this latest generous act just confirms his “nice guy” status — in conjunction with Ed’s recent sold-out concert stop in Dublin, Ireland, FM104, a.k.a. “a local Irish radio station,” gave away passes to what was billed as the second-best option — a live stream of the concert being shown at a Dublin movie theatre. Inside the room were 22 people — 10 actual contest winners and 12 station staffers posing as winners. Less than 15 minutes into the event, however, the screen suddenly went blank, leaving everyone literally in the dark, believing there was a technical difficulty. Moments later, in a moment captured on grainy cellphone video, the room erupted into high-pitched shrieks of joy as Ed suddenly appeared in person and informed the delirious winners that he was giving everyone tickets to his sold out show, along with a signed album and photo. [Ed. note: If you listen carefully, they’re probably still screaming…]

Afterwards, FM104 Group PD Dave Kelly said, “This is a first for Irish radio and we’re thrilled to surprise some of Ed’s biggest fans with an experience of a lifetime. Ed’s a friend of the station, so to come together on such an exclusive event, both on-air and online was an opportunity we grabbed with open arms.”

FM104 is consulted by Pollack Music and Media Group, and Company President Tommy Hadges, a regular reader of RAMP, was nice enough to submit this story to us. As Hadges told us, “It’s so great working with Dave Kelly and his team at FM104 for so many years. They never cease to amaze me with their ability to add new twists that make their stunts and promotions so compelling. No wonder the station is No. 1 for music in Dublin!” The event made such an impression that it was covered in The Irish Sun, and FM 104 produced a nice recap video of the promotion and posted it on its Facebook page.