Macklemore dropped from Ed Sheeran’s tour following pro-Palestinian remarks on stage

By Jesse Zanger

Performer Macklemore has been dropped from Ed Sheeran’s Loop tour after making on-stage statements that some found controversial. 

Friday, Sheeran made his first comments about the incident. 

Earlier this month, Macklemore spoke out about his pro-Palestinian beliefs while performing his opening act as part of the tour. 

“The truth is, a big part of the reason why I wanted to do this tour in the first place is so I can stand up in stadiums like this and say two words that are very near and dear to my heart: Free Palestine,” Macklemore said, according to clips from his set posted on social media.

Macklemore went on to perform a song called “Hind’s Hall,” a reference to a Columbia University building that protesters renamed during pro-Palestinian demonstrations there.

Macklemore’s remarks drew criticism from some and praise from others. 

The Anti-Defamation League called Macklemore’s comments “completely unacceptable,” and the Israeli American Council started a petition calling for Macklemore’s removal from the remainder of the tour. 

The concert promoter for the tour announced Macklemore’s departure Monday. 

“As the concert promoter for Ed Sheeran’s U.S. Loop Tour, we have been notified by venues on the upcoming U.S. tour dates that they will not allow a concert to take place with Macklemore on the lineup, which would result in the cancellation of the tour and impact hundreds of thousands of fans. After discussions with stakeholders, Macklemore will not be performing on the remaining support dates,” Messina Touring Group said in a statement. 

Macklemore posted his response to his removal on social media. In his post, he said he is not a victim, that the Palestinian people are. He claimed he was removed from the tour after Sheeran got a phone call from New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft, who owns one of the stadiums where they were set to play. Kraft has since responded to those allegations. 

“Taking a side can cost you,” he posted. “Money, brand deals, sponsorships, festivals, private shows, relationships and access. I’ve lost all of those things.”

In the same social media post, Macklemore wrote that “antisemitism is real” but added criticism of Israel and Zionism should not be “conflated with hatred of Jewish people.” 

Sheeran addressed the matter in a social media post Friday. In it, Sheeran wrote he was notified by venues for his upcoming tour dates “they would pull the shows if [Macklemore] was still supporting. I was informed that this stance was based on how Macklemore conveyed part of his message during his performance, rather than on everything that was said.” 

Sheeran said he spoke with Kraft, the venues and the tour promoter “to try and find a mutual resolution for all, but the venue’s and promoter’s decision was final.” 

Macklemore’s removal “was the promoter’s decision, it was not mine. Macklemore’s contract for the tour was with the promoter, not me.” 

Sheeran went on to write that while he has his own personal views about the conflict between Israel and Hamas, “there is a reason I do not use my professional platform for politics … those who come to my shows do not expect a political forum.” 

“I have spent this week trying to build bridges, to find a solution and unfortunately, was unable to do so,” Sheeran concluded. “I know who I am, both as a person and as an artist, and those who know my heart know my values too.” 

Macklemore has previously been criticized for using imagery and rhetoric that some consider antisemitic, dating to 2014. 

“Freedom of speech is not freedom from responsibility … a concert stage is not a platform for anti-Israel and antisemitic propaganda,” the IAC said in response to Macklemore’s removal. “When a war is presented one-sidedly, erasing the massacre that led to it … while the Jewish state alone is presented as the guilty party, the message crosses the line from legitimate political criticism into antisemitism.”     

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), however, decried Macklemore’s removal. 

“We call on Mr. Sheeran and the tour promoters to reverse course. They should pursue legal options or reschedule his tour rather than give in to bullying by billionaires who care about free speech as much as they care about slaughtered Palestinian children,” CAIR Deputy Director Edward Ahmed Mitchell said. “Macklemore is taking a courageous and moral stand and Mr. Sheeran should bravely stand with him. The companies responsible for this attack on free speech for the benefit of a foreign government must be held accountable.”