Sheeran wrote " Tenerife Sea " while in Nashville , the capital of the US state of Tennessee . It was inspired by the events following the 2013 Grammy Awards , wherein his single " The A Team " was nominated for Song of the Year , a first Grammy nomination for Sheeran . He lost the award to the American band Fun for its song " We Are Young " . Along with his girlfriend , Sheeran attended the after-party where he , being in a new experience , felt uninterested participating in the conversations . According to Sheeran , " neither of them wanted to be there - you just want to be with this one person " . He also told '' The San Francisco Examiner '' : " It was a very odd atmosphere , where everyone was out for themselves . And I found myself being competitive , as well , and pissed off that I did n’t win , which felt very unhealthy . " " Tenerife Sea " is a love song , in which Sheeran 's vocals are multi-tracked . Randall Roberts of the '' Los Angeles Times '' likened the song to that of Eric Clapton 's 1977 ballad " Wonderful Tonight " and Ginuwine 's " In Those Jeans "
2013 Grammy Awards
55th Annual Grammy Awards
Tenerife Sea