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Ed Sheeran performs hits, talks tweets and brings a huge crowd to TODAY

The English singer-songwriter hit the stage for our Citi Concert Series Thursday.
/ Source: TODAY

The 4th of July is behind us and the weekend is still ahead, but we've found the perfect way to celebrate the summer right in the middle of the week.

We've got Ed Sheeran on the TODAY plaza!

The English singer-songwriter hit the stage for our Citi Concert Series Thursday and brought his biggest hits along for the show.

That's really saying something, because this hit maker has had a busy year.

His latest album, "÷" (aka "Divide"), went straight to the top of the Billboard charts in March, and it packed a string of successful singles — including two tracks that debuted in the Top 10 in the same week ("Shape of You" and "Castle on the Hill"). That feat is a first for any artist.

Sheeran's smash success explains why his fans, otherwise known as Sheerios, lined up long before the sun came up to see him perform on TODAY.

And what a line it was:

In fact, according to the New York Police Department, 12,000 fans showed up.

Fans pack the TODAY plaza for Ed Sheeran concert
Fans packed the TODAY plaza for Ed Sheeran's concert.Nathan Congleton / TODAY

Speaking of his fans, they got some bad news this week when a report claimed the social media savvy singer had quit Twitter due to "people saying mean things."

Well, we've got the real story right from Sheeran.

"It's not like I quit it. I still post to Instagram and it goes to Twitter," he told Matt Lauer.

The only thing that's really changed is that he doesn't read tweets about himself anymore.

"There's so much positivity out there; I'm just saying as a human being we always read the one negative one and ignore the others. And I don't want to do that," he explained.

"It's just foolish to do, when there's so much love out in the world, to look at the negative stuff. I'm just choosing not to read it."

Fans pack the TODAY plaza for Ed Sheeran concert
Nathan Congleton / TODAY

Want to see even more live music? Stick with TODAY. On July 14, our Citi Concert Series will feature actress and pop singer Hailee Steinfeld.