TOKYO - Maybe a man walking around in a panda outfit does not arouse much attention in Japan where folk dressed up as manga and video-game characters are a common cosplaying sight.

That perhaps explained the fashion choice of British folk-pop singer Ed Sheeran as he walked around Osaka without the stress of being mobbed by fans.

He was in the city to perform on April 23 in an Asian swing of his Divide Tour that also saw him making a Singapore stopover on Friday (April 26).

But the game was up when Sheeran, 28, stepped into a convenience store.

"People were baffled when they saw a giant panda walk into a shop, but were even more stunned when the head came off and Ed's ginger mop came out," The Sun newspaper quoted a source as saying.

Sheeran has said that the colour of his hair is one of the biggest factors behind his start in show business.

"When I started playing music, every time I would do a gig, everyone was like 'oh it's the ginger guy with the small guitar' and you get remembered for that," he told an interviewer.

"The thing I always say to kids now is it's great to be weird."

Japan's cosplayers might just heed his advice and dress as a panda to stand out in the crowd.