This article was originally published on Crafting Your Home. A human contributor also wrote and edited the post.
The post Ed Sheeran Breaks His Silence on Gaza at a Philadelphia Show With No Opening Acts Left on His Tour first appeared on Crafting Your Home
Ed Sheeran walked onto the stage at Philadelphia’s Lincoln Financial Field on Saturday, Sept. 19, for his first concert since rapper Macklemore was dropped from his U.S. tour, and used the opening minutes to say what he had avoided saying all week publicly.
The 35-year-old singer told the crowd that what is happening in Gaza is “catastrophic and unjustifiable,” according to CBC News, and he apologized to fans for the turmoil surrounding the tour.
His remarks came after a week in which the rapper’s removal, a dispute involving stadium owners, and the exit of every supporting act turned a routine stadium run into one of the month’s biggest music stories.
The situation is sensitive, and the people involved describe it very differently, so the details matter. Macklemore says he was removed because of pressure from New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft, while Kraft says his decision was based on Macklemore’s comments and what he called a broader history of antisemitic rhetoric and imagery.
Macklemore has said his criticism of Israel should not be read as criticism of Jewish people. Below is a full account of what Sheeran said in Philadelphia, how the dispute unfolded, and what has happened since.
What Sheeran Told the Philadelphia Crowd
Sheeran began the show by asking permission to say a few words about the past week, Variety reported. He told fans he is used to his music being criticized, but that this week’s criticism concerned something far more important, and that he had made difficult decisions and mistakes.
He said he was “so, so sorry,” per Variety. He then turned to Gaza and said that what is happening there is catastrophic, unjustifiable, and disproportionate, while also saying that his heart has been broken by the scale of devastation and the loss of civilians’ lives, including children’s lives, as CBC News reported.
NBC News reports that Sheeran also described the Oct. 7 attacks on Israel as “horrific,” and Variety says he added that the attack compounded centuries of Jewish pain.
The West Bank also came up, with Sheeran saying, per CBC, that the systemic injustice unfolding there cannot be overlooked.
He described his own position as one of learning, saying he has been speaking with people across the spectrum to work out how to help victims of these terrible times, and admitting, as AOL reported, that “I do not know enough.” He said the issue is humanitarian and that he could no longer hide how he feels, according to NBC News.
Sheeran also raised concerns about how venues manage artists. Rolling Stone reports that he said he is worried about venues wanting to “pre-approve content for performers.”
He said this happens in many places around the world, but should never happen in the free world. Turning to the crowd, he said he wants his concerts to be a place where everyone is welcome, including people with opposing views, and that the songs are about love, hope and unity.
NBC News says he later told the audience it had been the best show of his life and that he felt a great deal of love from them.
Sheeran began the night without an opening act, since his backing band and remaining supporting acts had quit earlier in the week, CBC reports. Variety says he later introduced replacement musicians, including violinist Alicia Enstrom, who filled in for the Irish folk group Beoga.
Dozens of demonstrators gathered outside the stadium beforehand, NBC News reports, chanting “Free, free Palestine,” and one attendee, retired surgeon Robert Boucher, 73, said he came to take a stand for freedom of speech.
How the Macklemore Dispute Unfolded
The story began earlier in September, when Macklemore opened for Sheeran at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey. According to Fortune, he said “Free Palestine” at the shows on Sept. 4 and 5 and performed his protest song “Hind’s Hall.”
Variety quotes him saying that a big part of why he wanted to do the tour was so he could say those two words in stadiums.
The Hollywood Reporter says the Israeli American Council then petitioned for his removal, and that groups including StopAntisemitism and the Combat Antisemitism Movement, along with singer Pink, also called for it.
On Monday, Sept. 14, tour promoter Messina Touring Group announced that Macklemore was off the remaining U.S. dates. The company told Rolling Stone that venues had said they “will not allow a concert to take place with Macklemore on the lineup,” according to ABC News.
Macklemore posted on Instagram that Sheeran told him Kraft had rallied other stadium owners, who collectively gave an ultimatum, as NBC News reported.
The Hollywood Reporter adds that The Wall Street Journal described a 40-minute phone call between Kraft and Sheeran, in which Kraft reportedly said he had sympathy for the Palestinian people but considered Macklemore’s comments hate speech and not a free speech issue.
Kraft did not deny Macklemore’s account. NBC News says he said the decision to bar the artist from Gillette Stadium was based on Macklemore’s recent actions on stage and “a broader history of antisemitic rhetoric and imagery,” in wording ABC News also carried.
Fortune notes that Macklemore has said his criticism of Israel should not be interpreted as criticism of Jewish people. On Tuesday, Sheeran wrote on Instagram that the removal was “the promoter’s decision, it was not mine,” according to the Boston Globe.
He added that he would never let down fans who had made plans or abandon the touring crew and other acts who depend on the tour for work.
Later that day, the departures began. NBC News reports that Finneas and violinist Aaron Rowe withdrew in protest, and The Hill lists Danish band Lukas Graham and Irish band Beoga among the acts that left, leaving no supporting acts.
The Boston Globe reports that Beoga said it objected to Macklemore being silenced. Children’s entertainer Ms. Rachel, an outspoken pro-Palestinian activist, accused Sheeran of backing Ukraine at his shows while treating Palestine as too political, The Hill reported. Fortune adds that some ticket holders have asked for refunds since the lineup changed.
The Donations, the Backlash and What Comes Next
Money became part of the story midweek. On Wednesday, Macklemore wrote on Instagram that he would donate $1 million of his net earnings from the tour to six organizations supporting Palestinians and invited Kraft to do the same, according to The Hill.
He also said he wanted to “bring the conversation back to where it belongs,” as AOL quoted, meaning the Palestinian people. Kraft said in a statement that Sheeran had called him before Macklemore’s challenge to ask him to match a $2 million donation “to aid in the region to fight this humanitarian crisis,” per Variety.
Kraft added that Sheeran plans to reach out to other venue owners and that the goal is to keep working together to “build bridges,” as UPI reported.
He also said he has supported efforts for decades that bring young Palestinians and Israelis together to build businesses and create jobs.
The Hill reports that as of Wednesday night, Sheeran had not confirmed the donation himself, and Kraft had not said which organizations would receive the money. That gap remains a point to watch, because the pledge is currently described only through Kraft’s statement.
The tour goes on. According to the Boston Globe, Sheeran is scheduled to play Gillette Stadium on Sept. 25 and 26, and Fortune reports that the North American leg runs into November.
Neither the Boston Globe nor the other outlets reviewed say whether Macklemore or the departed acts will return, and Sheeran did not announce anything of the kind in Philadelphia.
What is clear is that the singer, who Fortune notes has often tried to stay neutral on political issues, has now taken a public position on Gaza, and that arguments over free speech, venue power, and the tour’s future remain unresolved.
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