Ed Sheeran has said the promoter of his United States tour was responsible for removing Macklemore after the rapper voiced support for Palestinians during a performance at New Jersey’s MetLife Stadium earlier this month.
In a six-slide Instagram post, Sheeran said he wanted to “set out some facts” about the decision. He said venues had threatened to withdraw future shows if Macklemore remained part of the Loop Tour, and that the dispute concerned how Macklemore delivered part of his message rather than all of his remarks.
“I spoke with the venues at length all week to try and build a bridge,” Sheeran wrote. He said he was “appalled” by the conflict between Israel and Palestine but did not want to use his professional platform for politics, arguing that concert audiences did not expect a political forum.
Several artists subsequently said they were leaving the tour in support of Macklemore and Palestinians. They included Irish singer-songwriter Aaron Rowe, Irish band Beoga, Danish band Lukas Graham and musician Finneas.
Robert Kraft, owner of the New England Patriots, confirmed he had pressured Sheeran to remove Macklemore from the tour. Kraft said Macklemore had been barred from appearing at the Patriots’ Gillette Stadium in Massachusetts because of what he described as a broader history of “antisemitic rhetoric and imagery”. In a statement to Al Jazeera, Kraft said the decision was not intended to diminish Palestinian suffering, but argued that advocacy should not come at the expense of the Jewish community or obscure Hamas’s responsibility.
Macklemore, whose real name is Ben Haggerty, said Sheeran told him Kraft had organised a boycott among stadium owners unless he was removed over his pro-Palestinian remarks. Macklemore said the two artists had discussed the issue during the previous week and described Sheeran as a close friend, while criticising his public refusal to take sides on Israel’s war on Gaza. Sheeran said he respected Macklemore’s convictions and believed different approaches could still pursue peace.