Ed Sheeran has removed American rapper Macklemore from the remaining dates of his US Loop Tour after the supporting act’s onstage comments in support of Palestinians sparked backlash and threats from venue owners.

The decision, confirmed by the tour’s promoter on Monday, comes days after Macklemore used his sets at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey to call for a “Free Palestine” and perform his protest track “Hind’s Hall.”

Macklemore posted a lengthy statement on Instagram explaining the move. He said he and Sheeran had held “some difficult conversations this past week.” According to the rapper, New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft, whose company controls Gillette Stadium, told Sheeran that Macklemore would not be allowed to perform there.

Kraft then allegedly contacted other stadium owners, who issued an ultimatum: keep Macklemore on the bill and the remaining shows would be cancelled.

“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,” Macklemore wrote. He added that Sheeran mentioned the words “Free Palestine” and the Palestinian flag had upset people the singer had spoken with.

Macklemore said he replied that if those words were more offensive than the deaths of Palestinian children, there was a fundamental disconnect. Sheeran, he claimed, stuck to the line “I don’t take sides.”

Messina Touring Group, the promoter for the US leg, confirmed the removal in a statement to media outlets. Venues on the upcoming dates had notified them they would not allow concerts with Macklemore on the lineup.

Keeping him would have meant cancelling shows and affecting hundreds of thousands of ticket holders. After discussions with stakeholders, Macklemore will not perform on the remaining support dates.

The controversy began at the September 4 and 5 shows at MetLife Stadium. Macklemore appeared in a keffiyeh, projected images of pro-Palestinian campus protests, and spoke directly to the crowd about Gaza and the occupied West Bank.

He told the audience the people there should know “we have not forgotten about them.” The performance drew sharp criticism from groups including Stop Antisemitism, which accused him of turning a mainstream concert into anti-Israel propaganda.

Singer Pink shared a critical clip and called the incident “awful,” later clarifying that Jewish fans had felt scared and did not expect a political ambush.

An Israeli-American Council petition had already called for Macklemore’s removal. Kraft, a longtime supporter of Israel and Jewish causes, has not publicly commented on the specific allegations.

Public Reaction

Social media reacted quickly. Trackers and fan reports showed Macklemore’s Instagram following jump by more than 400,000 in the hours after his statement. Sheeran’s account, by contrast, lost tens of thousands of followers estimates ranging from roughly 39,000 to just over 100,000 in the first day.

One widely shared post claimed the British singer had lost more than 500,000 followers after “supporting Israel.” That figure is not supported by available data and originated from a satire account that labels its content as fake.

Sheeran has not issued a public statement endorsing Israel or any side in the conflict. His only reported position remains the neutral stance Macklemore described.

The episode has split fans and fellow artists. Some praised Macklemore for speaking out and said dropping him showed that neutrality favors the stronger party. Others argued that concertgoers paid for music, not a political lecture, and that stadium owners have the right to protect their venues and audiences.

A few artists posted messages of support for the rapper; others stayed quiet.

This is not the first time politics has collided with large-scale tours. Stadium contracts, local pressure, and the size of the audiences involved create practical limits that smaller venues rarely face. Sheeran’s Loop Tour is one of the biggest of the year, selling out arenas and stadiums across the United States.

Cancelling dates would have been costly for the promoter, the artist, and the fans who already held tickets.

Macklemore has long been open about his views on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. In 2024 he released “Hind’s Hall,” named after a young Palestinian girl killed in Gaza, and has repeatedly criticized Israel’s military campaign.

He has insisted he is not antisemitic and that criticizing Israeli policy is not an attack on Jewish people. In his recent statement he stressed that he, Sheeran, and Pink are not the victims in this story ; people in Gaza are.

As of Tuesday, the remaining Loop Tour dates are expected to go ahead without Macklemore. No replacement opening act has been announced. Sheeran has not posted about the decision.

The rapid swing in Instagram numbers shows how quickly audiences now punish or reward artists for political choices, even when those choices are forced by external pressure.

For now, one of the world’s biggest pop stars finds himself in the middle of a conflict he has repeatedly said he does not want to take sides in yet the practical result is that a high-profile supporting act has been removed for taking one.