All of Ed Sheeran’s Opening Acts Have Dropped Out of the Tour Amid Macklemore Uproar

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All of Ed Sheeran’s remaining opening acts have dropped out of his U.S. stadium tour in protest after rapper Macklemore was removed from the lineup following his viral pro-Palestinian speech.

Finneas, Irish singer Aaron Rowe, Irish band Beoga, and Danish band Lukas Graham announced Tuesday that they would no longer support Sheeran on his remaining tour dates. Their departures mean every opening act listed for Sheeran’s upcoming shows has now pulled out.

Macklemore was dropped from the tour Monday after venues warned they would not host Sheeran’s upcoming concerts if the rapper remained on the bill. The backlash followed Macklemore’s Sept. 4 performance at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, where he declared “Free Palestine” before performing his protest song “Hind’s Hall.”

Finneas said he was withdrawing because “artists must not be silenced when they speak up for the oppressed,” while Rowe said he could not “stand by” as wealthy figures sought to silence those speaking out against “Israeli genocide.”

Beoga similarly blamed what it called the “Zionist lobby” for attempting to silence artists, while Lukas Graham argued that “money doesn’t give you the right to own the conversation.”

The mass departures came the same day Sheeran insisted that removing Macklemore was “the promoter’s decision, not mine.”

Sheeran said venues had threatened to pull his shows over “how Macklemore conveyed part of his message” and that he spent the following week speaking with venues in an effort to find a resolution.

Macklemore, meanwhile, claimed that New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft, whose Kraft Group owns Gillette Stadium, personally called Sheeran and rallied other stadium owners to demand his removal.

Kraft did not deny barring Macklemore from Gillette Stadium, but said the decision was based on the rapper’s “recent actions” and what he described as a “broader history of antisemitic rhetoric and imagery.” He maintained that the move was not intended to silence advocacy for Palestinians.

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