Ed Sheeran walked on stage alone this week, with no opening act, and told fans he was “so, so sorry” before calling the war in Gaza “catastrophic and unjustifiable and disproportionate.”
Quick Take
- Ed Sheeran resumed his tour with no opening acts after every remaining support artist quit in solidarity with Macklemore.
- Macklemore was removed from the tour after saying “free Palestine” on stage and performing a song about a Palestinian child killed in Gaza.
- Sheeran says the removal was the promoter’s call, not his, after venues threatened to cancel shows.
- New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft confirmed he personally barred Macklemore from performing at Gillette Stadium.
- Sheeran’s new Gaza remarks call the war “unjustifiable” while also calling the October 7 Hamas attack “horrific.”
A Tour Thrown Into Chaos
Ed Sheeran’s Loop tour hit a wall in early September when Macklemore told a crowd at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey to remember “the occupied West Bank” and performed “Hind’s Hall,” a song about a five-year-old Palestinian girl killed in Gaza. Within days, Macklemore was off the tour entirely. Every remaining opening act then quit in solidarity, leaving Sheeran to perform completely alone.
Sheeran later apologized to fans and admitted to “making mistakes” as he restarted the tour without any support acts. He used the moment to speak in person for the first time about the war, calling the situation in Gaza “catastrophic and unjustifiable and disproportionate,” while also describing the October 7 Hamas-led attack on Israel as “horrific”.
Who Actually Made the Call?
Sheeran insists he did not personally remove Macklemore. He said the rapper’s tour contract was with promoter Messina Touring Group, not with him, and that “the venue’s and promoter’s decision was final”. Messina backed that account, saying venues warned they “will not allow a concert to take place with Macklemore on the lineup,” threatening to cancel dates and hurt “hundreds of thousands of fans”.
Macklemore tells a different story. He says Sheeran and his team made the decision after “difficult conversations” that week, and that his support for Palestinians “has cost him professionally”. He also claims stadium owners, including Patriots owner Robert Kraft, pressured Sheeran to cut him. Kraft later confirmed he personally barred Macklemore from Gillette Stadium shows, saying performers who “cross” certain lines lose access to his venues.
A Fight Nobody Can Fully Prove
No leaked emails, contracts, or recorded calls have surfaced to show exactly who pulled the trigger first: Sheeran, the promoter, or the venues. What is documented is a chain of public statements from Sheeran, Macklemore, Messina, and Kraft that mostly agree on the sequence of events but disagree sharply on who is to blame. That gap between what is confirmed and what is alleged is where much of the public anger is now aimed.
Even a member of Congress got involved. Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez accused Kraft of organizing other stadium owners to block Macklemore, calling it an example of a small group of venue owners silencing speech about the war. Kraft has not fully answered every detail of that claim, leaving the full picture of who coordinated what still unsettled.
Why This Feels Bigger Than One Tour
This is not the first time an artist has faced consequences for speaking about Gaza. Music festivals, streaming platforms, and now stadium tours have all seen similar fights break out since the war began. For many fans on both sides, the real question is not just about Sheeran or Macklemore. It is whether ordinary performers and fans can ever discuss this war in public without powerful venue owners, promoters, or advocacy groups deciding what gets said on stage.
That worry cuts across the usual political lines. People frustrated with unchecked corporate power and people frustrated with speech restrictions both see something familiar here: a handful of wealthy stadium owners and touring companies quietly shaping what millions of fans get to hear, while the artists caught in the middle try to protect their careers, their friendships, and their own consciences all at once.
ED SHEERAN ADDRESSES ISRAEL, GAZA AFTER MACKLEMORE REMOVED FROM TOUR
Singer Ed Sheeran performed to a packed house in Philadelphia last night, just days after the controversy surrounding his now former opening act, rapper Macklemore. Macklemore had been announcing pro-Gaza…
— Worldwide News Network (@WorldwideNNX) September 21, 2026
Sheeran’s tour continues, now without a single opening act, as fans wait to see whether his public statement calms the backlash or deepens it. Macklemore has not returned to the lineup, and no venue, promoter, or artist has released documents that would settle exactly who made the final call.
Sources:
theguardian.com, reuters.com, bbc.com, billboard.com, thefader.com, en.wikipedia.org
© unitedfrontnews.com 2026. All rights reserved.
