Ed Sheeran has commented on the decision to drop Macklemore as the opener from the remaining dates of his Loop Tour following the rapper’s onstage comments supporting a Palestinian state.
The 35-year-old singer took to Instagram to share a statement on Tuesday, saying, “I am appalled by the conflict between Israel and Palestine. The suffering and pain caused on both sides is a human tragedy. There are too many wars across the world causing immeasurable pain, none of which should be tolerated. Macklemore asked to join my tour last year and I agreed, because I respect him as an artist. As with all my support acts, I agree that they play a setlist of their choosing.”
Sheeran said that after Macklemore’s performances at his New Jersey shows, venues on his upcoming tour dates “communicated that they would pull shows if he 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. I spoke with the venues at length all week to try and build a bridge. One of those people was Robert Kraft. I was also involved in direct talks with promoters along with activists on both sides to try and find a mutual resolution for all, but the venue’s and promoter’s decision was final,” Sheeran’s statement continued.
“Macklemore coming off tour was the promoter’s decision, it was not mine. Macklemore’s contract for the tour was with the promoter, not me,” Sheeran added.
“I would never let down the fans who had made plans, nor would I abandon the touring crew and the other support acts and musicians who rely on me for work and to make a living,” Sheeran wrote. “I have always used my platform and music to bring people from all backgrounds and cultures together and this won’t ever change.”
“I am not complicit. I have my personal views on this devastating conflict. Just because I choose not to speak publicly, it doesn’t mean I don’t have them, and it doesn’t mean I don’t care. Nor does it mean I don’t support causes in my own, personal way,” the Shape of You singer’s statement continued.
“There is a reason I do not use my professional platform for politics – my audience includes young people, often children, of all backgrounds. Those who come to my shows do not expect a political forum,” Sheeran wrote.
“I respect Macklemore’s strength of purpose to stand up and shout for what he believes. However, there is room for multiple approaches to the same end: peace. I choose to use my fame and platform to be a place of safety and sanctuary, to maintain diplomacy and keep conversations open, not closed. If we only focus on shouting the loudest, nothing will ever change. There are different approaches to being an advocate for change.
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“I have spent this week trying to build bridges, to find a solution and unfortunately, was unable to do so. I know who I am, both as a person and as an artist, and those who know my heart know my values too,” Sheeran’s statement concluded.
Sheeran’s statement comes a day after his tour promotor issued a statement to Rolling Stone, alleging that venues on the U.S. tour told the company they would “not allow a concert to take place with Macklemore on the lineup.”
“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, promoter of the U.S. leg of Sheeran’s Loop Tour, told the outlet.
Macklemore shared his own statement on Monday, announcing he was dropped from the tour and alleged that the New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft, who owns the Gillette Stadium in Massachusetts, said that he “would not be allowed to perform in his stadium.”
“Ed also told me that Kraft had rallied some of the other stadium owners and collectively they gave him an ultimatum: if Macklemore stays on the tour, you will not be allowed to play in our venues,” Macklemore wrote.
Global News has reached out to Kraft’s representatives for further comment, but has not received a response.
“In this moment I think it matters. I am not a victim. Ed Sheeran is not a victim. Pink is not a victim. We have careers, money, opportunities, safety and audiences around the world. Whatever consequences any of us face for what we say, we get to go home to our families,” the Thrift Shop rapper wrote.
“The victims are the Palestinian people. The men, women and children who have been killed, starved, displaced and forced to live through unimaginable violence. More than 20,000 children have been killed in Gaza alone. People are being killed today, and people will be killed tomorrow. I want to make sure that as I tell this story, we don’t lose sight of that,” Macklemore continued.
The Can’t Hold Us rapper said that Sheeran, who he said is like a “brother” to him, was “in a f—ed up position.”
“He knew it. His typical apolitical stance was being challenged in a way it never had been before. He told me that the words ‘Free Palestine’ and the image of the Palestinian flag were hurtful to a lot of people he spoke with. I told him that if those words were more offensive than tens of thousands of Palestinian children being killed by Israel, then there was a fundamental disconnect between where those people stood and where I stood. But he couldn’t get past his public facing, ‘I don’t take sides,’” Macklemore wrote.
Macklemore said that he hopes this isn’t “the end of my relationship with Ed.”
“Thirteen years of friendship doesn’t disappear because of one painful disagreement. I hope we both continue listening, studying what is happening in Palestine and wrestling with what neutrality means in a moment like this. My door will always be open to continuing that conversation,” he added.
The 43-year-old rapper said that he didn’t need 10 shows from Sheeran.
“I needed 2. Two chances to stand in front of 90,000 people and say the words that somehow became too dangerous to say. Free Palestine. But if those words cost me the stage, while turning the conversation back to Palestine, then it was the most successful tour I’ve ever been on,” Macklemore wrote.
Macklemore first faced backlash after his onstage comments during his Sept. 4 set at New Jersey’s MetLife Stadium, where he said “Free Palestine” before performing his protest song Hind’s Hall, about pro-Palestinian demonstrators at Columbia.
“To all of my Jewish brothers and sisters: criticism of Israel, criticism of apartheid, being against genocide in no way is a criticism of you,” he said in his speech. “My message is for peace; love for all human beings to be treated with dignity, respect and equality. So I say free Palestine, I say free Lebanon, I say free Cuba, I say free Congo, free Sudan, free all people in America living in fear of this terrorist organization, ICE. None of us will be free until we are all free.”
The Israeli-American Council launched a petition following Macklemore’s comments, calling for Sheeran to remove him from the tour.
“This was an Ed Sheeran concert – not a political rally, not a protest, and not an activist event. The issue is not whether Macklemore has the right to hold political views. The question is where the line should be drawn when an opening act uses a global concert platform to advance a one-sided political agenda,” the petition read.