Irish folk group Beoga have confirmed they remain in contact with Ed Sheeran following their decision to withdraw from his North American tour in solidarity with rapper Macklemore.
Appearing on Friday night’s Late Late Show, the band spoke to host Patrick Kielty about the fallout from their decision, the financial and professional consequences, and their continuing friendship with Sheeran.
Asked whether they had been in touch with the singer since leaving the tour, Beoga’s Niamh Dunne said: “We have, and we will remain in contact with him.”
She continued: “It’s more important for us that we do the right thing and that we leave the door open to anybody at any stage that wants to come and understand why we do this, why we fight for this, why we believe in this.”
Beoga said they remain in contact with Ed Sheeran
Dunne added that the band had always stood up for justice and would continue to do so.
Beoga withdrew from the remaining US dates of Sheeran’s Loop tour in September after Macklemore was removed from the line-up following comments he made in support of Palestine during a concert in New Jersey.
Sheeran subsequently said the decision to remove the rapper had been made by tour promoters and venues, rather than himself, and that he had unsuccessfully attempted to resolve the situation.
Reflecting on the controversy, Dunne admitted the experience had been difficult.
“It wasn’t a walk in the park, anyway, I can tell you that much,” she said.
“It was a tricky thing to navigate, for sure. I think, you know, it was something that we never foresaw being in the middle of, and kind of had to navigate it as it came at us.”
Dunne said the decision to withdraw had been straightforward, but the consequences were more complicated.
Macklemore plays Dublin’s 3Arena on Monday, 26 October
“The decision itself was quite easy. It was kind of a no-brainer,” she said, acknowledging the “very real implications” for the band, professionally, creatively and financially.
Bandmate Eamon Murray said the musicians had reached their decision during a Zoom call and felt returning to the tour was not an option.
Dunne also recalled being in the stadium when Macklemore made his remarks, saying the audience reaction had been overwhelmingly supportive.
“There was actually a lot of support for what he said in the stadium, which I’m not sure has maybe been reported to the extent that we felt it,” she said.
The band also discussed the support they have received from Christy Moore, who has invited them to join him for a special concert at Dublin’s Vicar Street on 7 December.
Murray said Moore’s decision to reach out had meant a great deal to the group.
“It was a really lovely thing for him to reach out to us and say, ‘I’m on your side now, and I’m going to show up for ye.’”
He added: “It’s an honour, really, to get to play some of those songs with Christy. It will be the stuff of dreams.”
During the interview, band member Seán Óg Graham also paid an emotional tribute to legendary traditional musician Dónal Lunny, who died on Friday aged 79.
Graham performed alongside Lunny during The Bothy Band’s reunion and described the experience as “magical”.
“I was really privileged to play with him. He’s one of my musical heroes,” he said.
“He was so kind to me during that time where we were doing the reunion of The Bothy Band, and I’ll never forget it. And I’m really sad that he’s gone.”
You can watch Friday night’s Late Late Show on the RTÉ Player.