The lefty rapper Macklemore has sparked fury after going on an anti-Israel rant while opening for Ed Sheeran at MetLife Stadium over the weekend.
The Israeli-American Council started a petition on Sunday calling for Sheeran to drop the “Thrift Shop” singer from the remainder of his tour, accusing the rapper of spreading antisemitic propaganda.
Macklemore, whose real name is Benjamin Hammond Haggerty, made calls to “Free Palestine” and accused Israel of committing genocide in Gaza at the New Jersey Meadowlands show.
“I wanted to stand up here on stages across America and say two words that are near and dear to my heart: Free Palestine,” the Grammy-winning rapper said as he wore a keffiyeh draped over his shoulders.
Macklemore, seen performing last month, is under fire for spewing an anti-Israel rant when he opened for Ed Sheeran at New Jersey’s MetLife Stadium this weekend. AFP via Getty Images
Macklemore made calls to “Free Palestine” and accused Israel of committing genocide in Gaza at the New Jersey Meadowlands show on Sept. 4.
The rapper also performed his song, “Hindi’s Hall,” a reference to the pro-Palestine protests at the Columbia University campus while images from Gaza were played on giant screens.
“This was an Ed Sheeran concert – not a political rally, not a protest, and not an activist event,” said the IAC, which represents more than 15,000 Israeli-Americans.
“The issue is not whether Macklemore has the right to hold political views. The question is where to draw the line when an opening act uses a global concert platform to advance a one-sided political agenda,” the group added.
“This becomes even more troubling when the message relies on selective imagery, biased messaging, and disputed claims presented to a massive audience as fact, without context or complexity.”
Sheeran’s management and Macklemore’s public relations teams did not immediately respond to The Post’s request for comment.
Another image shown during Macklemore’s opening set.
Sheeran’s management team did not immediately respond to The Post’s request for comment.
The concert was held on Sept. 4, with tickets ranging from $71 to $210 on Ticketmaster.
Josh Wein, a father of two, said he was excited to bring out his family to see the show until Macklemore came out to the stage.
“When he started chanting “Free Palestine” and pushing his clearly uneducated version of the Israel/Gaza conflict, my daughters looked at me completely confused,” he wrote on X.
“I had brought them to an Ed Sheeran concert, not to have an opening act lecture them about Middle East politics.”
The Grammy-winner wore a keffiyeh while opening for Sheeran. He’s pictured above wearing the traditional scarf during a Dublin show in June. Redferns
Wein said the entire experience left his family sour as they vowed to stop supporting Sheeran due to his association with Macklemore.
New Jersey residents Noya Zuaretz and Gefen Levin, who attended the concert with friends and family, said they experienced a similar shock after failing to check who was going to open for Sheeran.
“We only found out there and we were in shock. It was really horrifying,” they told Ynet.
“It was even harder because friends of ours were killed in the war and murdered at Nova,” they added. “It was like a knife in the heart to hear him sing that way and hear people cheering.”
Mark Treyger, CEO of the New York Jewish Coalition, noted that the incident comes at a time when antisemitic hate crimes are running rampant following the Oct. 7, 2023 terror attacks on Israel.
To turn a major concert into a platform for “one-sided political messaging” only helps to divide people rather than address the issues at hand, Treyger warned.
“Ed Sheeran and his team should heed these serious concerns,” he told The Post. “Artists with extraordinary platforms also have extraordinary opportunities to use their talents to heal, bring people together and lower the temperature rather than raise it.”
Macklemore has repeatedly slammed Israel for the casualties in Gaza while performing on stage.
The Israeli-American Council started a petition urging Sheeran to drop Macklemore from the remainder of his tour, accusing the rapper of spreading antisemitic propaganda. Deadline via Getty Images
He first called the war “a genocide” while speaking at a pro-Palestinian rally in Washington in 2023, and later chanted “F–k America” during a similar rally in 2024 over then-President Joe Biden’s support of Israel.
Israel has been accused of committing genocide in Gaza, where the war has claimed more than 73,000 lives inside the Palestinian enclave, according to the Hamas-run ministry of health, which does not differentiate between civilians and terrorists. Israel said it only tagets terrorists and makes efforts to warn civilians to get out of the area before an attack.
The IAC called for not only Macklemore to be removed from Sheeran’s remaining tour dates, but for all venues to establish clear boundaries between entertainment and political performances.
“Jewish patrons should not be subjected to this propaganda,” the StopAntisemitism group wrote on X in response to Friday’s incident.
“Fans deserve apologies and refunds. Unacceptable.”