Macklemore has been dropped from the remaining dates of Ed Sheeran's Loop Tour after his 'Free Palestine' speech during two shows at MetLife Stadium sparked major backlash, according to Rolling Stone.
The 43-year-old rapper, whose real name is Benjamin Hammond Haggerty, will not continue with the tour after several major US venues notified promoters that they would not allow him to perform on their stages. The scale of the venue bans could have forced the entire tour to be cancelled, affecting hundreds of thousands of fans, so organizers removed Macklemore and the tour will move forward without him.
Macklemore, who had a global hit with Thrift Shop, is known for weaving political statements into his live shows. The controversy began when he used his opening set to chant 'Free Palestine' and deliver a politically charged speech, telling the crowd he wanted people in Gaza and the occupied West Bank to know they had not been forgotten.
Fan-recorded footage showed him wearing a keffiyeh during part of his set. He told the crowd: "One of the reasons why I wanted to come on this tour was because I wanted to stand up here on stages in stadiums across America and say two words that are very near and dear to my heart: Free Palestine. I said, Free Palestine!" He added: "I want those words to be loud and clear so that people from Gaza, all the way to the occupied West Bank know that we have not forgotten them."
He then performed his protest song Hind's Hall while images of the devastation in Gaza were projected on the big screens at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, where he served as opening act for Sheeran on two consecutive nights, September 4 and September 5.
Boycott Petition Over the Speech
Macklemore also faced a boycott petition calling for his removal from Sheeran's tour over the blunt and direct language he used onstage.
During the speech, he also said: "I believe that every human being walking on this earth deserves exactly the same freedom, to know safety and peace before knowing the sounds of violence." He referred to ICE as a "terrorist organization" before shouting "Free Palestine" and "Free Cuba, Congo, Sudan and Iran."
The Israeli-American Council organized the petition insisting he be dropped from the tour's remaining dates. It was not known how many signatures the petition had collected. Macklemore has previously voiced support for Palestinians and has criticized Israel's conduct in Gaza and the occupied West Bank for years.
"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.
Fan reaction was split on social media following the two shows, with some defending his comments and others accusing him of anti-Semitic rhetoric.
Pink Reacts to the Controversy
Singer Pink, 47, weighed in on the fallout amid calls for Macklemore's removal, reposting an Instagram Story from StopAntisemitism that criticized his performance.
"Awful - Jewish fans bought tickets to see Ed Sheeran sing last night in NJ, not to be ambushed by Macklemore's anti-Israel propaganda. Instead, Macklemore walked onstage in a keffiyeh, shouted 'Free Palestine,' accused Israel of a false 'genocide,' and turned a mainstream event into a political nightmare against the Jewish state. Concert-goers are owed apologies and refunds," the caption read.
Pink did not add any additional commentary of her own beyond resharing the post. Macklemore appeared to double down on his comments, posting a clip of his MetLife Stadium speech last week with the caption: "Wanting all humans to be treated equal should never be controversial."
A Previous Controversy
This is not the first time Macklemore has faced accusations of anti-Semitism. In 2014, he apologized after wearing a disguise on stage in Seattle that many condemned as an anti-Semitic Jewish caricature.
"There is no worse feeling than being misunderstood, especially when people are hurt or offended... I respect all cultures and all people," he said at the time. "I would never intentionally put down anybody for the fabric that makes them who they are. I love human beings, love originality, and... happen to love a weird outfit from time to time."
He added that he never thought he looked Jewish: "Some people there thought I looked like Ringo, some Abe Lincoln. If anything, I thought I looked like Humpty Hump with a bowl cut."
