Sheeran and Stormzy previously performed together at the 2017 Brit Awards. "Take Me Back to London" was announced as part of the tracklist for No.6 Collaborations Project (2019).[2] A while after the song's release, two men from the Black Country sang a cover of it which went viral.[3]
"Take Me Back to London" is a grime song. According to HotNewHipHop's Aron A., Sheeran "shows off his bars on the record while swapping verses with Stormzy".[4] The song sees Sheeran "brag" about the gross of his ÷ Tour.[5]
Critical reception
Time's Raisa Bruner wrote that the trap beat on "Take Me Back to London" gets "Sheeran’s melodic touch, with Stormzy jumping in from the start to boost the energy with his signature vibrancy".[6]Jon Caramanica of The New York Times wrote that Stormzy "does an admirable job of rapping ferociously but politely enough to not upstage the host", criticising the line "It’s that time, big Mike and Teddy are on grime".[7]
Commercial performance
"Take Me Back to London" achieved success in the United Kingdom, where it debuted at number three and later reached number one on the UK Singles Chart, becoming the third single from No.6 Collaborations Project to reach the summit of the chart.[8][9]
"Take Me Back to London (Sir Spyro Remix)", featuring Stormzy, English artist Jaykae and English rapper Aitch was released as a single on 23 August 2019.[30]
Music video
A music video for the Sir Spyro remix was shot between Manchester, Birmingham and London by director KC Locke. It opens with images of Sheeran and Stormzy ripping up the countryside in a Rolls Royce Cullinan while wearing matching tracksuits and getting measured for bespoke suits. They're soon joined by Jaykae and Aitch to watch some motorcycle burnouts and along the way there is plenty of quintessentially British activity, including a spot of tea, late night post-pub grubbing and copious pints chugged.[31]
^"ČNS IFPI" (in Czech). Hitparáda – Digital Top 100 Oficiální. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: Select 29. týden 2019 in the date selector. Retrieved 24 July 2019.
^"ČNS IFPI" (in Slovak). Hitparáda – Singles Digital Top 100 Oficiálna. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: Select SINGLES DIGITAL - TOP 100 and insert 201929 into search. Retrieved 24 July 2019.