Ryan: By the time you read this, Ed Sheeran might have issued a statement or made a move that changes the direction of travel this week’s story and, indeed, his career has been heading towards.
Little did Ed know that when his support act, Macklemore, uttered two words, Ed’s life would change in a dramatic and potentially damaging way that may well be career-defining.
It’s fair to say that Ireland has had a special place in its heart for Ed Sheeran. He has always talked openly, warmly and proudly of his Irish roots, which are strong, sincere and authentic.
Ed Sheeran performs on day 2 of Latitude Festival at Henham Park Estate. Pic: Getty Images
It was a beautiful, sweet moment and arguably marked the time this country adopted Ed as one of our own.
I should add that he came through on his promise to fly Amy and her family to a gig in the UK with bells and whistles attached. So far, so good.
Over the years, he was a regular visitor to the show and sold out massive venues whenever he went on tour.
Along the way, Ed took it upon himself to bring artists and musicians with him in an unofficial role as mentor, supporter and patron of many Irish acts.
LAS VEGAS, NV – SEPTEMBER 20: Recording artists Ed Sheeran (L) and Macklemore perform ontage during the 2014 iHeartRadio Music Festival at the MGM Grand Garden Arena on September 20, 2014 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images for iHeartMedia)
In recent years, he brought the trad group Beoga on tour and into the recording studio as a kind of unofficial house band. The great up-and-coming talent, Aaron Rowe who I’ve written about here, was taken on by Ed and featured in the news this week, which I’ll get to in a moment. The excellent group Biird also got a look-in on the rolling Ed roadshow.
Rolling Stone magazine broke the news that Macklemore was being booted off Ed’s US tour because he shouted ‘Free Palestine’ while on stage.
There was video footage too but that’s been largely lost in the noise. The important detail is that Macklemore – who I didn’t realise was still on the go, but that’s on me – was given the boot and that’s the point at which it all kicked off.
The news drifted out that a billionaire businessman and his pals, who owned lots of stadiums and whose Jewish heritage was deeply offended by Macklemore’s pronouncements, got in touch with Ed and his people to say that he had to drop his support act or kill the tour.
Ed Sheeran performs during iHeartRadio KISS108’s Jingle Ball 2025 Presented By Capital One. Pic: Getty Images
A massive ask and a horrible dilemma for an artist whose lack of offensiveness is nearly part of his personality.
Macklemore was duly jettisoned, and soon thereafter Aaron Rowe announced that he was out. He cited Irish history, genocide and oppression in his statement, and while he thanked Ed for his support, he couldn’t stay on at a moral level. This was an enormous call for such a young artist who had been given the opportunity of a lifetime.
Beoga soon followed as did Lukas Graham and Finneas – all musicians who are Irish or have strong ties to this country and that is an important detail.
Historically, the majority of opinion in Ireland supports the Palestinian cause. In more recent years, the ongoing catastrophe in Gaza has strengthened resolve, and Ireland has been vocal at the highest political levels on this issue. Our history of hunger, oppression and isolation tends to draw us closer to causes like this as it’s in our bones.
I should point out that the younger people in Ireland appear to be the most exercised and vocal about events in the Middle East and again, they know our history and clearly feel there’s a resonance. This all brings us back to Ed Sheeran, an honorary Irishman in many ways but whose love affair with Ireland now hangs by a thread. The reaction to Ed’s response to this controversy didn’t go down well.
NEW YORK, NY – AUGUST 25: Ed Sheeran and Macklemore attend the 2013 MTV Video Music Awards at the Barclays Center on August 25, 2013 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. (Photo by Kevin Mazur/WireImage for MTV)
In many ways, he’s damned whatever he does and probably has to leap on one side of the fence or another in order to come out of this as unscathed as humanly possible.
There are so many questions. Will this blow over and people move on to the next thing? Is he actually being cancelled or is it just the internet going mad? Should he back one side or another and accept he’ll lose a chunk of fans as a result? Can he afford to let down crew, fans and sponsors by cancelling the rest of this tour?
These are all questions that Ed and his team must have been confronting all week.
The nicest guy in pop music is getting the kicking of a lifetime. It’s horrible to watch but people are more exercised about this than he probably anticipated.
Ryan Tubridy with Ed Sheeran. Pic: Instagram
From an Irish point of view, if Ed turned around and uttered two critical words, ‘On reflection?’ and went on to say he’s thought long and hard, he’s listened to the fans and his support acts and it’s time to call it a day on this tour, his halo would be restored and enhanced but at what price?
Would he be a pariah in the US, where emotions lean in another direction? Is one man’s pariah another woman’s hero? Should he care what people think? Can he or should he stay away from politics? So many questions and not a heap of time to answer them.
Having met Ed many times, I’ve only ever met a kind and generous person and I have no doubt that this is eating him up inside.
I hope he makes the right decision for his heart and maybe more importantly, for his soul.