All support acts quit Ed Sheeran's US tour after Macklemore's removal over Palestine remarks
September 16, 2026 at 01:59 PM · Updated 30d ago
Coverage
7 reports · 1 in Arabic, 6 in English · over 13 hours
Macklemore pledges $1m in tour earnings to Palestinian groups
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Macklemore pledges his $1m Ed Sheeran tour salary to Palestine
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Colin Kaepernick says NFL owners are colluding against Macklemore after Ed Sheeran tour ban
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بعد استبعاد ماكلمور، انسحاب جميع الفنانين المساندين من جولة إد شيران الأمريكية - BBC News عربي
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The artists who pulled out of Ed Sheeran’s tour over Palestine
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Watch: Will Ed Sheeran cancel his tour as support acts quit?
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Watch: Will Ed Sheeran cancel his tour as support acts quit?
(opens the publisher’s site)All supporting acts, including Sheeran's backing band, have withdrawn from his upcoming US Loop Tour after Macklemore was dropped for pro-Palestinian on-stage comments.
- Macklemore, whose real name is Ben Haggerty, was removed from the tour after saying "Free Palestine" at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey earlier this month.
- Sheeran said the decision to drop Macklemore was made by the tour's US promoter, not by him, after venues threatened to pull shows.
- Finneas, Irish singer Aaron Rowe, Sheeran's backing band Beoga and Danish band Lukas Graham announced Tuesday they were quitting the tour, set to start September 19 in Philadelphia.
- Macklemore said Sheeran told him that stadium owner Robert Kraft had barred him and rallied other venues to issue an ultimatum.
- Sheeran described the Gaza conflict as a humanitarian tragedy for both sides, defending his decision to keep politics off his professional platform.
- Kraft confirmed Macklemore's claim that he led the boycott, saying the venue would not provide a platform for hate speech.
- The tour's US promoter was identified as Messina Touring Group.
- Colin Kaepernick accused NFL owners of openly colluding against Macklemore, comparing the rapper's removal to his own blackballing after anthem protests.
- Macklemore pledged to donate the $1 million he earned from the tour to organizations supporting Palestinians and Gaza relief, and challenged Kraft to make a matching donation.