Macklemore dropped from Ed Sheeran tour after ‘free Palestine’ speech

Rapper Macklemore has been dropped from Ed Sheeran’s US tour after making pro-Palestinian comments on stage earlier this month.

The artist – whose real name is Benjamin Haggerty – had been the opening act for Sheeran’s Loop tour, but was criticised by Jewish groups after saying “Free Palestine” at two concerts and making political speeches.

Macklemore stood by his comments on Monday, confirming that he had been cut from the tour and writing in a statement that the real victims are the Palestinian people in Gaza.

Ed Sheeran has not yet commented, and who will replace Macklemore for the rest of the tour is unknown.

The controversy began on 4 September, when Macklemore, a long-time pro-Palestine activist, performed at Ed Sheeran’s concert at the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.

He told the audience: “A big part of the reason why I wanted to do this tour in the first place is so that I could stand up in stadiums like this and say two words that are very, very dear to my heart: Free Palestine.”

He then performed his song Hind’s Hall, which condemns Israel’s military action in Gaza, while video footage of the devastation in Gaza was shown on the big screen.

After that performance, the campaign group StopAntisemitism criticised the rapper, saying “Jewish fans bought tickets to see Ed Sheeran sing… not to be ambushed by Macklemore’s anti-Israel propaganda.”

The next night, Macklemore returned to the same stage and directly addressed his “Jewish brothers and sisters” in the audience.

“Criticism of Israel, criticism of apartheid, being against genocide, is in no way a criticism of you,” he said, adding that he wanted people in Gaza and the West Bank to know they had not been forgotten.

Israel rejects allegations of genocide. It says its troops conduct self-defence operations in Gaza and the occupied West Bank in accordance with international law.

The Israeli military launched a campaign in Gaza in response to an unprecedented Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on 7 October 2023, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 were taken hostage.

During Israel’s military campaign in Gaza more than 73,780 people have been killed, according to the territory’s Hamas-run health ministry, whose figures are considered reliable by the UN.