Ed Sheeran’s tour of North and South America was plunged into chaos Tuesday when four of his supporting acts abruptly quit in solidarity with the rapper Macklemore, who was dropped for making pro-Palestinian comments onstage. Hours after Sheeran posted on social media about Macklemore's ouster and attributed the decision to the tour's promoters, Irish acts Aaron Rowe and Beoga, the Danish band Lukas Graham, and Finneas posted on Instagram that they were leaving the tour. To display this content from Instagram, you must enable advertisement tracking and audience measurement.
Rowe and Lukas Graham would have been replacements for Macklemore on Sheeran’s remaining US dates, while Beoga had been performing several songs – including some the Irish folk band co-wrote– with Sheeran around the middle of each set. Finneas, who is Billie Eilish’s brother and musical collaborator, was due to tour with Sheeran in South America later this year. I stand with Palestine and its people.” Read moreRapper Macklemore dropped from Ed Sheeran's US tour after pro-Palestinian remarks The moves by his fellow artists put enormous pressure on Sheeran, who has tried to avoid politics and taking a side in the Gaza conflict, arguing that his fans don't come to his shows to hear politics.
Rowe and Beoga each cited their country’s history in their statements explaining their decision. As founding members of the Irish Artists for Palestine movement, we are committed activists for justice and will continue to be,” Beoga said. Rowe called Sheeran a friend and said the British singer-songwriter changed his life.
Nobody’s bank balance should decide who gets to speak or which suffering we’re allowed to acknowledge,” the band posted, seemingly referring to billionaire Robert Kraft’s role in Macklemore’s removal from the tour. Israeli minister unveils plan to remove Gaza's population over seven years To display this content from YouTube, you must enable advertisement tracking and audience measurement. One of your browser extensions seems to be blocking the video player from loading.
To watch this content, you may need to disable it on this site. Emails seeking comment were sent to Sheeran and the tour’s promoter, the Messina Touring Group. Sheeran weighed in on Macklemore being dropped after the rapper made pro-Palestinian comments onstage during their tour, saying the decision was made by the promoters alone.
The British singer also said he refused to be drawn into a public discussion about the war in Gaza. Macklemore said Monday on Instagram that several US venues told the promoter they would prohibit him from performing as Sheeran’s opening act, rallied by Kraft, owner of NFL’s New England Patriots. His Kraft Group also owns Gillette Stadium, where the Patriots play.
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