Grammy Award-winning artist Macklemore said he is getting pushback from concert venues as he brings his Free Palestine benefit concerts to the U.S.
The rapper behind hits including “Thrift Shop” and “Can’t Hold Us” said on Instagram that nine U.S. venues told him in mid-September that they had available dates for concerts, but “once they found out these were my benefit shows for Palestine, those dates were suddenly off the table. The doors were closed.”
The nine venues include Inglewood’s Kia Forum, L.A.’s Crypto.com Arena and Madison Square Garden in New York.
Earlier this year, Macklemore said he was removed from Ed Sheeran’s Loop tour after venue owners told Sheeran they would not host him at their stadiums if Macklemore was still part of the concert. Sheeran has said his promoters made the decision, according to the BBC.
Macklemore launched his Free Palestine tourin October, playing in Dublin, Paris and London. The concert proceeds benefit organizations supporting the Palestinian movement, according to the tour’s website.
Representatives for the Kia Forum and AEG, which owns Crypto.com Arena, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
MSG Entertainment, which owns Madison Square Garden, said that Macklemore is “not an arena level act.”
“We have some of the busiest venues in the world with extremely limited availability,” MSG Entertainment, said in a statement.
Spokespeople for the talent agency that reps Macklemore did not immediately return a request for comment.
Weighing in on the Palestinian issue can be a sensitive subject in Hollywood, as some people in the entertainment industry have received backlash on their social media posts on the topic.
In 2023, a prominent agent at Creative Artists Agency stepped aside from her leadership roles at the company after she reposted inflammatory comments on Instagram calling Israel’s response to Hamas “genocide.” That same year, actor Melissa Barrera was dropped from her role in “Scream VII” after she shared pro-Palestinian statements on Instagram.
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