Ed Sheeran has spoken out about how one episode of South Park "f*****g ruined his life".
The 30-year-old 'Shape of You' singer spoke out about how the animated sitcom impacted his life during a recent interview with Slam Radio.
In 2005, South Park released an episode titled 'Ginger Kids' (S09E11) which sees the obnoxious Eric Cartman believe he's caught "gingervitus" after appearing to wake up with red hair, pale skin, and freckles. In reality, Stan and Kyle actually just used skin bleach, dye, and tattoos as payback for Cartman saying red-headed people can't survive in sunlight and have no souls.
The episode quickly became a cult classic, primarily for how often it was referenced by kids in the schoolyard.
Speaking about growing up with red hair in the UK, Sheeran said: "Having red hair in England was always a thing that people took the p*** out of you for. But it was never something in America. People never knew what a ginger was in America."
However, speaking of how attitudes changed once the episode aired, Sheeran said: "That episode of South Park f****** ruined my life. I was going to America and everyone was like 'I love your hair dude.' And I was like 'Oh my God, people like my hair?'
"And then I remember that episode coming out and that was just it worldwide for the rest of my life."
Despite the impact the episode had, the 'Castle on the Hill' singer said that he was still a fan of the show and would be interested in lending his voice for a future episode if the invitation was ever extended.
Back in 2013, Sheeran spoke out about how he was bullied in part for his red hair, but added how being ginger helped him in his career.
Speaking to Take 40, per Capital FM, Sheeran revealed: "I think everyone goes through a bit of bullying at school. Of course you get picked on for certain things, but I think it ends up being a positive.
"I was quite a weird kid when I was little, I wore big glasses, had hearing problems, had a stutter and I had ginger hair, but I am now a successful musician and I have nothing to complain about."
Sheeran added: "Being ginger can seem like a bad thing when you are young but as a musician it has been my saving grace – because if you see a ginger kid on TV and there is only one messy-haired ginger kid who plays guitar, it is very easy to find them on YouTube."
Meanwhile, the 'Ginger Kids' episode of South Park currently holds an 8.8/10 rating on IMDb.