Macklemore has been kicked off the rest of Ed Sheeran’s stadium tour after several venues said they would refuse to let the rapper perform after his anti-Israel rants on stage.
“We have been notified by venues on the upcoming US tour dates that they will not allow a concert to take place with Macklemore on the lineup, which would result in the cancellation of the tour and impact hundreds of thousands of fans,” Messina Touring Group, which is promoting the US leg of Sheeran’s Loop Tour, told Rolling Stone magazine.
“After discussions with stakeholders, Macklemore will not be performing on the remaining support dates,” the company added.
Macklemore performs at St Anne’s Park on Wednesday, June 4, 2025, in Dublin, Ireland. Redferns
Ed Sheeran performs onstage during iHeartRadio z100’s Jingle Ball 2025. Kevin MazurGetty Images for iHeartRadio
The lefty rapper was scheduled to play at eight of the 10 remaining shows, scheduled to resume on Saturday.
The venues that objected to the rapper include: Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia; Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass.; Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta; Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis; Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, N.C.; AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas; and Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Fla., according to Rolling Stone.
The front page of the New York Post on Monday, Sept. 7, 2026.
Macklemore sparked outrage after going on an anti-Israel rant while opening for Ed Sheeran at MetLife Stadium last week, calling for a “free Palestine” and accusing Israel of committing a genocide in Gaza.
In response to the tirade, the Israeli-American Council launched a petition Sunday calling for Sheeran to drop the “Thrift Shop” singer from the remainder of his tour.
“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 artist said as he wore a keffiyeh draped over his shoulders.
Macklemore, whose real name is Benjamin Haggerty, also performed his hit song, “Hind’s Hall” about the pro-Palestine protests that erupted at the Columbia University campus as images from Gaza were played on giant screens.
In response to the tirade, the Israeli-American Council launched a petition calling for Sheeran to drop the “Thrift Shop” singer from the remainder of his tour.
Macklemore performs at St Anne’s Park on Wednesday, June 4, 2025, in Dublin, Ireland. Redferns
Famed media expert and Michael Jackson’s former publicist Michael Levine, who has represented dozens of Grammy Award winners, praised the decision to drop Macklemore from the bill.
“Macklemore turned Ed Sheeran’s concert into a political rally,” Levine told The Post in a statement. “Apparently, the one thing the crowd wanted freed was the stage.”
Levine said massive stadium shows are not an appropriate place to speak publicly about complex conflicts like the situation in Gaza.
“If Macklemore wants to open with ‘Free Palestine,’ he might try finishing with ‘Free the hostages.’ That would be a chorus worth hearing.”