Ed Sheeran resumed his Loop Tour over the weekend, after landing himself at the centre of controversy for bowing to pressure to remove Macklemore as the show’s opening act.
Last week, Ed made headlines when it was announced that Macklemore would no longer be serving as his support act, following comments the Thrift Store rapper had made on stage in support of Palestine earlier in the run.
This decision was met with widespread backlash, and his remaining opening acts eventually announced that they were withdrawing from the tour, as did his backing band.
On Saturday night, the Grammy winner performed his first live show since the controversy, which was not always smooth sailing.
Speaking from the stage at Philadelphia’s Lincoln Financial Field, where the tour continued without any support act, Ed began: “This is not usually how I would open the show, but before I play some songs tonight, I hope it’s okay if I say a few words about this last week.
“I’m used to my music being criticised, and I’m always happy to take that […] but this week the criticism was about something much more important. And I’ve had to take, and make, difficult decisions, and I am making mistakes, and I’m so, so sorry.”
While Ed maintained that he “never wanted to be an activist musician”, he said the events of the last week had “put me in the middle of an important and passionate argument about freedom of speech, and the most complex political issue on the planet”.
Appearing to read from a teleprompter, he said: “Honouring my commitment to my fans is completely central to who I am, and that is why I’m here tonight on my own and continuing my current tour. But I am deeply worried about the idea of venues pre-approving content of performers. This happens in so many places I perform around the world, but it should never happen in the free world.”
Ed continued: “I’ve tried in my career not to be a political commentator of any kind, because I want my music and shows to be about unity, not division, about humanity, not politics.
“But this is a humanitarian issue and I cannot hide how I feel about it anymore. What happened in Israel at a music festival on October 7th was horrific, and compounded centuries of Jewish pain. What is happening in Gaza is catastrophic and unjustifiable and disproportionate. My heart has been broken by the scale of devastation and loss of civilian’s lives – of children’s lives – and the systemic injustice we’re seeing unfold in the West Bank cannot be overlooked.”
“I, honestly, am so grateful that you’re here tonight with me,” he then noted. “This concert is still a place where everyone is welcome. And everyone here can stand beside people who have opposing views, and stand by people that they don’t agree with on everything, but they can all agree on singing these songs. And these songs are about love, hope and unity.”
Per Entertainment Weekly, the Grammy winner added that he was working out he could contribute to help what he described as the “victims of these terrible times”, as well as dedicating time to “listening and learning, because I do not know enough” about the conflict in the Middle East.
Later in the evening, Ed claimed that he’d also edited his show in light of the past week.
“At this point in the show, to be honest, I usually go out to a B-stage,” he explained. “And I’m going to be totally honest with you, I didn’t know what this audience would be like tonight. I didn’t know if I’d have things thrown at me.
“I apologise that today is not the usual show. I took the B-stage out because I was afraid of what might happen if I stood in the middle. And I will admit that. So, the show is a little bit different.”
At another point in the show, Ed said that the “last week of my life has been one of the worst weeks of my life” while “today has been one of the weirdest days of my life”.
“Tonight has been, honestly, the best show of my life,” he then enthused, to cheers from the crowd. “I really didn’t know whether this tour would be carrying on. I really didn’t know whether I’d even be getting on stage again, whether I even wanted to be an artist at all. In these situations, you really find out who your friends are, and it’s been a weird week. It happened very quickly, and the whole time, I have so many people telling me to cancel this tour, and so many people falling out of my life, that I’ve known for years and years and years. People just kind of backing away.
“And in the back of my mind, I saw the ticket sales for this gig, and you know… I didn’t see cancellations, I saw people buying tickets for this gig. And, everyone’s telling me to cancel [the tour], and I’m feeling all of my friends and family and people I know abandon me. And I look at the end of the week, and I see 50,000 people who haven’t abandoned me.
“People will say what they want, but I am doing this for you. I love you.”
During another emotional moment, he was seen breaking down in tears as he stated: “The world is a scary place right now. America is a scary place right now. This gives hope. Thank you so much, Philadelphia.
I hope you all have had fun. The one thing that I would like to apologise for is the first bit of the show, where it wasn’t about music, and I had to talk. And I understand that people have children here, and I understand that families didn’t buy a ticket to hear that first bit of the show.
But that was something that I felt like I needed to say. I felt there were a lot of questions that I needed to answer. So, for all the parents there with their kids tonight, thank you so much for bringing them, and I do apologise for that first bit. My shows are about this – they’re about unity, they’re about love, they’re about family, they’re about people coming together that have different beliefs.
Earlier this month, Macklemore told Ed’s fans in New Jersey: “A big part of the reason why I wanted to do this tour in the first place is so I could stand up in stadiums like this and say two words that are very near and dear to my heart: ‘free Palestine’. I said, ‘free Palestine!’.
“I want those words to be loud and clear, so that people all the way in Gaza, to the occupied West Bank, know that we have not forgotten about them.”
Reacting to the news he had been dropped from the tour, Macklemore detailed alleged phone conversations he’d had with Ed in the preceding days, in a statement shared on Instagram.
“Nothing I’m writing here is out of spite or because I want to tear down his character,” Macklemore told his followers. “But as I told Ed multiple times on the phone, our friendship can’t change my responsibility to tell the truth about what happened.
“Last Monday, in the middle of all the media attention surrounding Pink and what I said [on stage], Ed told me that Robert Kraft called him. We were scheduled to play Gillette Stadium later this month, which is owned by the Kraft Group. Ed told me that Kraft said I would not be allowed to perform in his stadium.
“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. Ed was in a fucked up position. He knew it. His typical apolitical stance was being challenged in a way it never had been before.
“He told me 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. But he couldn’t get past his public facing, ‘I don’t take sides’.”
The following day, Ed broke his silence on the matter, claiming: “After Macklemore’s performances at my New Jersey shows, venues on my upcoming tour dates communicated that they would pull the shows if he was still supporting.
“I was informed that this stance was based on how Macklemore conveyed part of his message during his performance, rather than on everything that was said. I spoke with the venues at length all week to try and build a bridge.
“One of those people was Robert Kraft. I was also involved in direct talks with promoters along with activists on both sides to try and find a mutual resolution for all, but the venue’s and promoter’s decision was final.
“Macklemore coming off tour was the promoter’s decision, it was not mine. Macklemore’s contract for the tour was with the promoter, not me. I would never let down the fans who had made plans, nor would I abandon the touring crew and the other support acts and musicians who rely on me for work and to make a living.”
Ed also maintained: “I have always used my platform and music to bring people from all backgrounds and cultures together and this won’t ever change. Those who have been to one of my shows will know that they are about unity, joy, escapism, love and a place for everyone to feel welcome.
“I am not complicit. I have my personal views on this devastating conflict. Just because I choose not to speak publicly, it doesn’t mean I don’t have them, and it doesn’t mean I don’t care. Nor does it mean I don’t support causes in my own, personal way.
“There is a reason I do not use my professional platform for politics – my audience includes young people, often children, of all backgrounds. Those who come to my shows do not expect a political forum. I respect Macklemore’s strength of purpose to stand up and shout for what he believes. However, there is room for multiple approaches to the same end: peace.”
In his own statement to Rolling Stone, Robert Kraft said that Macklemore’s removal from Ed’s tour had been based on “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”.
He was seemingly referencing an incident in 2014, when Macklemore performed in an outfit many critics claimed was inspired by antisemitic tropes and imagery. The rapper later apologised, insisting this had not been his intention.
“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,” Kraft added.
“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.”
Following this, Macklemore pledged his entire $1 million pay from Ed’s Loop Tour to charities offering aid in Palestine, encouraging Robert Kraft to match his donation.
Both Robert Kraft and Ed Sheeran then said they’d be giving $2 million each “to aid in the region to fight this humanitarian crisis”, without offering specifics.
