Macklemore claims he and Ed Sheeran had a “painful disagreement” over the rapper’s “Free Palestine” speech before he was dropped from the tour.
“Ed Sheeran and his team have made the decision to remove me from The Loop tour,” the “Thrift Shop” rapper wrote in part, in a post shared via Instagram Monday. “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.”
Macklemore (real name: Benjamin Haggerty) noted that he and Sheeran, 35, have known each other for 13 years and have shared “late nights, studio sessions and stages.”
“He has this infectious magic about him that I’ve grown to love. I consider him a brother,” he penned. “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, 43, said nothing in his statement was written “out of spite or because I want to tear down his character.” However, he allegedly told the “Shape of You” singer that their “friendship can’t change my responsibility to tell the truth about what happened.”
The three-time Grammy winner claimed Sheeran informed him last week that Robert Kraft, the billionaire owner of the New England Patriots, called the English songwriter and informed him that Macklemore would “not be allowed” to perform at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, later this month.
The stadium is owned and operated by the Kraft Group, which is owned by the 85-year-old businessman.
“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 claimed, adding that Sheeran “was in a f–ked up position” and that his “typical apolitical stance was being challenged in a way it never had been before.”
Macklemore 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.’”
Macklemore concluded his post by stating, “Thirteen years of friendship [with Sheeran] 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.”
In response to Macklemore’s latest post, Kraft issued a statement to Page Six on Monday.
“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,” the statement began.
“This decision is not about diminishing the suffering of innocent Palestinians or denying anyone the right to advocate on their behalf. 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.”
Kraft’s statement continued on, noting that he agrees with Macklemore on the fact that “too many lives have been lost” and there has been “too much suffering.”
“But only sharing selective information and ignoring the actions of Hamas is not honest and only advances more divisiveness and hate. Over many decades, I have directed resources to Palestine and created athletic and entrepreneurial opportunities for Palestinians who I admire and respect. Standing with the Palestinian people and standing against Hamas, antisemitism and hate should not be mutually exclusive,” Kraft added in his statement.
“Much of my time and attention for the last decade has been focused on the fight against antisemitism and hate of all kinds, and I feel a responsibility to stand up when I believe that line has been crossed. I have tremendous respect for Ed and his music, particularly his unique ability to bring people together and spread joy, and I have always been proud to welcome him and his fans to Gillette Stadium.”
Kraft concluded his statement by saying, “I would welcome the opportunity to sit down with Macklemore and discuss the facts, because ultimately our goal is the same – peace for all people, an end to suffering, and an end to all hate.”
Page Six has also reached out to Sheeran’s rep for comment.
On Monday, Rolling Stone reported that Macklemore was dropped from Sheeran’s Loop Tour due to onstage remarks about Palestine and the people of Gaza.
“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,” Messina Touring Group, promoter of the US leg of Sheeran’s tour, told the outlet in a statement.
“After discussions with stakeholders, Macklemore will not be performing on the remaining support dates,” the company added.
During two concerts at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey earlier this month, the “Can’t Hold Us” emcee yelled, “Free Palestine,” and displayed images of devastation in Gaza and performed his protest song, “Hind’s Hall.”
The venues that reportedly declined to have Macklemore take the stage due to his political stance include the Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida; the Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia; the Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta; the Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis; the Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina; the AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas; and the Gillette Stadium.
Macklemore was slated to join Sheeran for eight of the 10 remaining US concerts.
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