Pro-Israel billionaire Robert Kraft led campaign to drop Macklemore from Ed Sheeran tour
In a statement shared on Instagram, US rapper Macklemore confirmed that “Ed Sheeran and his team” had dropped him from the tour after he said “Free Palestine”.
The campaign to remove Macklemore from the tour was driven by billionaire Robert Kraft, owner of the New England Patriots and Gillette Stadium, who threatened to block Sheeran and his team from using his stadium.
Kraft also rallied other stadium owners across the country to stop the tour from proceeding.
“Ed told me that Kraft said I would not be allowed to perform in his stadium,” Macklemore wrote.
“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.'”
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According to Macklemore, Sheeran told him that he “doesn’t take sides” on Israel’s genocide in Gaza or its occupation of the Palestinian territories.
Kraft, who is a Jewish-American and passionate advocate of Israel, once led a group of hall of famer American footballers on a tour of Israel, in which he met Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Speaking in Israel in 2019, Kraft told the audience: “After my family, there is nothing I’m more passionate about than the State of Israel and my Jewish identity.”
In 2024, Kraft also withdrew his support from Columbia University after pro-Palestinian demonstrations against Israel's genocide were allowed to happen, saying it was “no longer an institution I recognise".
'The victims are the Palestinian people'
The campaign to silence Macklemore followed his appearances at Ed Sheeran’s MetLife Stadium shows in New Jersey last week, where he told the crowds that he wanted the people of Gaza and the West Bank to know that their plight at the hands of Israel had not been forgotten.
Macklemore, 43, whose real name is Benjamin Haggerty, then told the crowd “Free Palestine” and condemned Israel’s ongoing genocide in Gaza and apartheid in the occupied West Bank.
He was received with cheers from large sections of the crowd but indirectly subjected Sheeran, known for his play-by-the-book apolitical persona, to attacks by the pro-Israel right.
Numerous humanitarian groups and a United Nations commission have said Israel is carrying out a genocide in Gaza.
Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice over its onslaught in Gaza.
The International Criminal Court has also issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defence minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.
In his Instagram statement, Macklemore said people like Sheeran, whom he has known for more than a decade, were not the victims and had choices.
"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 wrote.
"The victims are the Palestinian people. The men, women and children who have been killed, starved, displaced and forced to live through unimaginable violence.
"More than 20,000 children have been killed in Gaza alone. People are being killed today, and people will be killed tomorrow. I want to make sure that as I tell this story, we don't lose sight of that," he said.
In his own statement, Kraft did not deny that he had corralled other wealthy stadium owners to threaten Sheeran and silence Macklemore.
He said his decision was based on Macklemore’s “recent actions, material shared from the stage during Ed Sheeran’s shows in New Jersey… that we believe has been deeply offensive and hurtful to the Jewish community.”
“I would welcome the opportunity to sit down with Macklemore and discuss the facts,” added Kraft, saying that his goal was “peace for all people, an end to suffering and an end to all hate.”
The announcement that Macklemore had been dropped triggered an overwhelming backlash against Sheeran, while Macklemore received significant support from fellow stars and activists.
The well-known journalist Glenn Greenwald wrote on X: “It seems difficult to insist that Israelis and Jews are the world's most hated, marginalized and oppressed group - suffering a global epidemic of exploding anti-Semitism - while the surest way to get fired, punished and cancelled is uttering even mild criticisms of Israel.”
Paloma Faith wrote on Instagram: “It is not controversial to affirm that cancelling human rights advocates for saying Free Palestine doesn’t protect Jewish people. It protects Israel from accountability.”
She added: “I wish for you what you wish for Palestine."
Javier Bardem, the Oscar-winning actor, publicly supported Macklemore and called for a boycott of Sheeran’s tour, writing: “Boycott activated.”
Climate campaigner and Palestine activist Greta Thunberg said: “Total solidarity and a free Palestine. The 'active' silence of artists in the face of injustice and genocide will not be forgotten.”
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