Ed Sheeran’s opening acts have quit the tour after Macklemore was fired for his “Free Palestine” speech.
Finneas, Lukas Graham, Aaron Rowe and Beoga have all dropped out of the Loop tour in support of the rapper.
Finneas wrote in an Instagram post Tuesday, “Artists must not be silenced when they speak up for the oppressed. … I stand with Palestine and its people.”
As for Rowe, he said in an Instagram post that he didn’t make the decision to drop out of the tour lightly, and credited Sheeran for being a friend to him and changing his life.
“But as Irish people, we know all too well about genocide, forced famine and violent occupation,” he wrote. “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.”
Rowe said he would “lose all respect” for himself if he continued with the tour, concluding, “FREE PALESTINE.”
Meanwhile, the Danish pop band Lukas Graham wrote in their own social media post about leaving the tour, “We should be able to speak out about war, about civilians being killed, about children who deserve to grow up.”
“Money doesn’t give you the right to own the conversation,” they added. “Nobody’s bank balance should decide who gets to speak or which suffering we’re allowed to acknowledge.”
Irish band Beoga also shared that they stood against “the silencing of Macklemore by Zionist lobbyists.”
More musicians have come out in support of the “Thrift Shop” rapper, including Michelle Branch, who wrote in an Instagram Story Tuesday, “May we all have the courage and integrity to use our voices to stand up for what’s right. Bravo, @macklemore.”
Sheeran spoke out on his own Instagram Tuesday to address Macklemore’s firing.The “Thinking Out Loud” singer said he’s “appalled by the conflict between Israel and Palestine,” before explaining that he agreed to let Macklemore join his The Loop tour and play his own setlist.
But because of “how Macklemore conveyed part of his message during his performance” at two of their New Jersey concerts, Sheeran learned from venues that future shows would be pulled if Macklemore wasn’t dropped.
Sheeran said he tried to “build a bridge” between the two sides — including talking to Robert Kraft, the billionaire owner of the New England Patriots and the Kraft Group, which operates Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts — but was ultimately unsuccessful.
“Macklemore coming off tour was the promoter’s decision, it was not mine,” he insisted. “Macklemore’s contract for the tour was with the promoter, not me. 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.”
He also clarified that he’s “not complicit” in the “devastating conflict” in the Middle East, and explained that he’s usually quiet about politics because his audience mostly includes young people “of all backgrounds.”
Macklemore was dropped from the tour after several venues notified the tour’s promoter that they would not allow him to perform after he yelled “Free Palestine” onstage at a recent show, Rolling Stone previously reported.
In a lengthy post, the “Downtown” rapper did place responsibility on Sheeran, writing that “Ed Sheeran and his team have made the decision to remove me from The Loop tour.”
“I consider him a brother,” he wrote in part. “And because of that, we’ve had some difficult conversations this past week. The type of talks rooted in love and respect for one another that still end in a place of fundamental disagreement.”
Macklemore claimed that Sheeran told him that Kraft called him and said he would “not be allowed” to perform at Gillette Stadium later this month. He further claimed that Sheeran told him 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,” he alleged. “But he couldn’t get past his public facing, ‘I don’t take sides.’”
Kraft explained his stance in a statement to Page Six, writing in part, “Gillette Stadium has a longstanding commitment to providing a welcoming environment for all guests and ensuring that events held at our venue do not provide a platform for hate speech. Based on Macklemore’s recent actions, material shared from the stage during Ed Sheeran’s shows in New Jersey, and a broader history of antisemitic rhetoric and imagery that we believe has been deeply offensive and hurtful to the Jewish community, we determined that his participation in the September 25th and 26th concerts at Gillette Stadium would cross that line.” “This decision is not about diminishing the suffering of innocent Palestinians or denying anyone the right to advocate on their behalf,” the statement continued. “Their pain and loss are real. But that advocacy should not come at the expense of the Jewish community or obscure the responsibility of Hamas, a United States and globally (including Canada, European Union, United Kingdom and Japan) designated terrorist organization whose horrific actions have caused immeasurable suffering for Palestinians and Israelis alike.”
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