 Why did Ed Sheeran compose a song for Pokemon Scarlet and Violet? Because he's a big ol' Pokemon nerd, in a good way. In the lead-up to the release of Pokemon Scarlet and Violet for the Nintendo Switch, everyone at Game Freak has been unusually quiet about the game's development. There have been no behind-the-scenes interviews, and nobody seems keen to reveal any of the content within the game. Nobody, that is, except Ed Sheeran, who is clearly just very excited to be here. In a series of social media posts which have since been made private, the singer talked of his long-standing love of the Pokemon series, and how happy he is to be included in the new games. He said, I've played Pokemon since I was in primary school. Me and my brother used to have different versions of the games, and would trade Pokemon together till we completed our Pokedex. I loved the cards, but the games are what I lost myself in. I loved the whole world they created. It kept me distracted if there was negative stuff happening in my life, school that I wanted to avoid. It was a world I could escape into, and I've played it ever since. Even though I'm 31 now, I still own the same Game Boy colour and play Pokemon Yellow or Silver on planes and trains when I'm on tour. It's such an honour to add a song into a Pokemon game and shoot a nostalgic video too. While several music artists have collaborated with Pokemon in the past year, such as Katy Perry and Post Malone, Sheeran's love of the brand seems to go deeper than most. In celebration of his song's inclusion in Scarlet and Violet, Sheeran got a new tattoo of his favourite Pokemon, Squirtle, which has pride of place just below his right elbow. This isn't all. Sheeran clearly enjoyed Pokemon Black on the Nintendo DS, as he tweeted about it twice in 2011, saying, I've just brought a new Pokemon game. I'd like to say I got it for the long journeys on tour, but I'm still a kid at heart, very excited. And a few months later, Pokemon Black for the DS is wicked. What's more, in 2019, while on a hiatus from performing live music, he was photographed singing in a karaoke bar in Tokyo, wearing Snorlax and Charizard onesies. So, how did Sheeran's collaboration with Pokemon come about? According to Sheeran, I met the people from Pokemon when I was travelling in Japan, and we joked about me writing a song for them. But now, here we are. First, Sheeran appeared in a special in-game concert in Pokemon Go in November of 2021. This event involved additional wild encounters with water-type Pokemon, because, according to Niantic, Ed always chooses the water-type Pokemon as his first partner when he starts a Pokemon RPG. Sheeran's new song for Pokemon Scarlet and Violet, Celestial, isn't the only piece of music composed by well-known Pokemon fans within the game. Toby Fox has confirmed his return to the series, having previously composed for Pokemon Sword and Shield, as well as for Game Freak's other recent title, Little Town Hero. He said on Twitter, I had the honour of composing the field music for Pokemon Scarlet and Violet, after creating a concept sketch, Game Freak arranged it into many versions that you'll hear throughout the game. When I was first given this assignment, the game director, Omori-san, showed me a Lucario with a giant oversized crystal flower coming out of its head and told me it was the new game mechanic. Using this information as a blueprint, I created the song. Hope you enjoy! At the time of making this video, Pokemon Scarlet and Violet have not been released, but it's already clear that the game's soundtrack will prove very popular. The moral of the story is, embrace what you love and have fun with things that make you happy. You never know where following your passions will take you.