Ed Sheeran distances himself from decision to pull Macklemore as three more pro-Palestinian artists leave his tour

JTA – Pop superstar Ed Sheeran said he wasn’t behind his tour’s recent decision to drop opening act Macklemore following the rapper’s recent pro-Palestinian remarks at a stadium show. 

“I am not complicit,” Sheeran wrote in a statement on Instagram on Tuesday, saying that Macklemore leaving the tour “was the promoter’s decision, it was not mine”. These were his first public words on the controversy. 

Hours after Sheeran’s comments, three of his supporting acts announced they would be leaving his tour. All three acts, Aaron Rowe, Beoga, and Finneas, posted pro-Palestinian solidarity statements to Instagram in their announcements. 

Sheeran’s own note added, “I am appalled by the conflict between Israel and Palestine.” The British singer-songwriter wrote that he had been “involved in direct talks” between Robert Kraft and various promoters “to try and find a mutual resolution for all”. 

Kraft, the Jewish and pro-Israel billionaire who owns one of the stadiums in which Sheeran and Macklemore had been scheduled to play, said on Monday that he had told Sheeran’s team that Macklemore wouldn’t be allowed to perform there. 

In his own statement to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA), Kraft had said that Macklemore’s recent performance at New Jersey’s MetLife stadium, at which the rapper accused Israel of “genocide” and broadcast images from Gaza, “has been deeply offensive and hurtful to the Jewish community”. Pop star Pink, who is Jewish, also criticised Macklemore following the performance. 

Sheeran didn’t mention Jews in his statement, but noted, “I have always used my platform and music to bring people from all backgrounds and cultures together and this won’t ever change.” 

He also had some veiled criticism of his tourmate’s methods. “Those who come to my shows do not expect a political forum,” Sheeran wrote. “I respect Macklemore’s strength of purpose to stand up for what he believes. However, there is room for multiple approaches to the same end: peace. If we only focus on shouting the loudest, nothing will ever change.” 

The other acts who announced they were leaving Sheeran’s tour didn’t agree. Some had strong words for Kraft and Zionism. 

“As Irish people we know all too well about genocide, forced famine, and violent occupation,” Rowe wrote in his own statement. “I cannot stand by and allow billionaires to use their position of power to silence the rightful voices of those who speak up against Israeli genocide and who highlight the savage murder of children.” 

“It’s important that everyone knows that the real enemy is the Zionist lobby,” Beoga, also an Irish act, wrote in the band’s statement. “Research how much Robert Kraft has done to fight the BDS [Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions] movement. That will give you a sense of what we’ve all been up against.” 

In a shorter statement, Finneas said, “Artists must not be silenced when they speak up for the oppressed.” He added, “I stand with Palestine and its people.” 

The Israeli-American Council (IAC), which organised a boycott against Macklemore following his New Jersey show, criticised Sheeran from the other direction in a new statement to JTA. 

“It’s time to take responsibility for giving a stage to antisemitic messaging,” the IAC said, of Sheeran. “This isn’t just ‘criticism of Israel’. It’s a message that crosses the line between legitimate political criticism and antisemitism. This is Ed Sheeran’s stage, it’s the tour that carries his name – and so the responsibility for what happens on it is his too.”