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Macklemore Faces Petition to Leave Ed Sheeran Tour After ‘Free Palestine’ Plea
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In Short: Rapper Macklemore is facing calls to be removed from Ed Sheeran's Loop Tour after delivering a pro-Palestinian message during his opening set.
Rapper Macklemore is facing calls to be removed from Ed Sheeran's Loop Tour after delivering a pro-Palestinian message during his opening set at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey. According to reports, Macklemore used the concert to speak directly to the crowd about the conflict, drawing immediate backlash from the Israeli-American Council (IAC), which has launched a petition calling for Sheeran's team to remove him from the tour. In response, Macklemore doubled down on his stance, emphasizing that his support for Palestinians is 'in no way a criticism' of Jewish people.
The controversy erupted after Macklemore opened for Sheeran at the stadium, where he performed his 2024 protest anthem 'Hind's Hall,' named for Columbia students' renaming of an academic building in honor of a Palestinian girl killed by Israeli forces. The IAC's petition, signed by more than 150,000 Israeli Americans, argues that Macklemore's comments were inappropriate for a concert setting. Macklemore, however, maintains that wanting all humans to be treated equally should never be controversial.
Prior to the controversy, Macklemore had already faced similar backlash for his politically charged speech at Sheeran's concert, where he said, 'Free Palestine!' and 'Free America, free Cuba to the Congo to Sudan to Iran, and all the people in America who have to live in fear because of this terrorist organization ICE.' The organization's petition reads, 'This was an Ed Sheeran concert – not a political rally, not a protest, and not an activist event.
Despite the backlash, Macklemore is scheduled to open eight U.S. stadium shows between mid-September and early November, according to Sheeran's website. The rapper's politically charged speech drew the attention of the Israeli-American Council, which represents more than 150,000 Israeli Americans. Macklemore's stance has sparked a debate about the role of artists in political activism and the appropriateness of such messages in concert settings.
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- “A big part of the reason why I wanted to do this tour in the first place is so I could stand up in stadiums like this and say two words that are very near and dear to my heart: Free Palestine,” Macklemore told the crowd.