We all know that Ed Sheeran is a pop superstar and a bestie of Taylor Swift, but you probably didn’t know that he is a huge fan of of folk singer Luke Concannon, a British folk artist who will perform at The Mill in Shelburne Falls this Saturday, March 9, at 7 p.m. as part of Permaculture’s winter concert series.

“Luke is one of my three main heroes along with Van Morrison,” Sheeran has said of Concannon, who was working as part of the duo Nizlopi when the superstar discovered his music. Nizlopi scored a big hit in the U.K. in 2005 with a song called ”JCB.” Concannon wrote the song from the perspective of when he was 5-year-old boy going to work with his dad. You probably never heard the song because the group never had much of a presence in the United States.

“We did SXSW in Austin, Texas once,” said Concannon. “I think that was around 2004. That was pretty much it because it’s hard to get a work visa to come here,” said Concannon, who currently resides in Guilford, Vermont, in a recent phone conversation. “But we toured Canada, Korea, and all around Europe. But we had not done America much.”

That all changed since the singer moved to the United States in 2016. He came here for one simple reason: love. He met his wife, Stephanie Hollenberg, also a singer, when she was working in Scotland, and they eventually moved here to her homeland. In addition to being a singer, Hollenberg, who will perform with her husband on Saturday night, is a student at the Harvard School of Divinity. Since living here in the United States, Concannon has pursued his solo career and works as a songwriting coach — and his journey in getting to this place is a fascinating one.

Concannon grew up in England in an Irish-English family and was always surrounded by music, especially at Irish family parties. When he was 13 he started playing music and writing songs with his school chum, John Parker, and they formed the duo Nizlopi. They released their first album in 2004, and one of the songs off that recording was “JCB,” a beautiful, sentimental folk tune that resonated with listeners. The song went to number one on the charts in 2005.

“It sold like a million records and was on a family-owned record label,” he said. “We went on to play Wembley Arena opening for Christina Aguilera, and played before 20,000 in Hyde Park.”

A young Ed Sheeran was at a sold out show Nizlopi played at Shepherd’s Bush Empire in London, and he fell in love with the band.

“In the U.K., when you are around 14 or 15, you have to do a couple of weeks of work, say, if you want to be a graphic designer. You go work with a graphic designer and so forth. And Ed, bless him, knew that he wanted to be a singer-songwriter, so he wrote to us and wrote to us, asking to work with us,” recalled Concannon.

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Sheeran’s persistence paid off and he ended up working for Nizlopi.

“So he came out with us for about two weeks and helped set up the stage, worked as a guitar tech, and sold merchandise and everything,” Concannon said.

Years later when Sheeran’s career had taken off, he went on the BBC and they asked him if he were marooned on an island and could only pick one song what would you pick? He chose a Nizlopi song called “Flooded Quarry” and said that was his favorite ever, over Bob Dylan and Bob Marley and Eminem.

Sheeran would go on to claim the band as one of his biggest influences and he continues to support Concannon’s solo work. Actor Hugh Jackman is also big fan and supporter.

Nizlopi would release another album before they split in 2010. Hitting it big so fast came with its challenges, and Concannon needed a break. He went hitchhiking in Palestine and the experience left him rejuvenated and ready to launch a solo career.

Since living in the United States, he has released his second album “Ecstatic Bird in the Burning” in 2021. This is an album that deals with light and dark, the art of being alive in a turbulent world. Songs like “The Hummingbird (Kieran’s Jig)” draw heavily from his Irish heritage, while “Bring the Liberation” is a call for social action and ”Doing Nothing” is a humorous look at accomplishing nothing with one’s life.

The album has been well received and reached number eight on the U.S. folk charts and number 10 in the U.K. Expect to hear material off this album and new songs Concannon has written inspired by the beauty of living in Vermont.

When he’s not working on his own music, Concannon coaches individual and songwriting groups. “I help songwriters to realize their potential as songwriters, making a positive difference in the world,” he said of the goal of his coaching. “I can help them to be the next Ed Sheeran,” he said with a laugh.

Next up is a tour of the U.K., but before that it’s Shelburne Falls and Concannon’s engaging and lively live shows have won rave reviews.

“People say it’s a one-of-a-kind — I go out there to open people’s hearts and minds to make a positive difference in the world,” Concannon said. “That’s what we go for.”

To learn about his songwriting coaching and his Patreon account, visit lukeconcanon.com. Tickets for the show are $20 and available at thepermacultureplace.org

It will be a night of electrifying beats and atmospheric sounds on Saturday, March 9, when RJD2 returns to Hawks & Reed Performing Arts Center in Greenfield. With seven studio albums to his credit and numerous collaborations, RJD2 (yes his name is inspired by R2D2 of Star Wars), works in a variety of genres and is guaranteed to treat crowds to a special night of music.

The last time he played at Hawks & Reed, he packed the house and it should be the same for this show, so get your tickets now.

Tickets are $35 in advance ($45 the day of show) and are available now at hawksandreed.com.

Old Crow Medicine Show will return to the Summer Stage at Tree House Brewing Co. on July 18 at 7 p.m. Tickets go on sale Friday, March 8, at 10 a.m. The band is touring in support of their album “Jubilee,” and their show at Tree House sold out last year.

Sheryl Hunter is a freelance writer who resides in Easthampton. Her work has appeared in various regional and national publications. She can be reached at Soundslocal@yahoo.com.