From CBS News · · 2m
The openers who walked out on Ed Sheeran
Four acts quit Ed Sheeran's stadium tour within hours of Macklemore being pulled for saying "Free Palestine" on stage.
In brief
Four acts quit Ed Sheeran's stadium tour within hours of Macklemore being pulled for saying "Free Palestine" on stage. When a billionaire venue owner can decide who opens a stadium show, neutrality stops being a neutral position, and the rest of the bill gets to answer for it. Originally reported by CBS News.
Four acts walk in one day
On Tuesday, Aaron Rowe, Beoga, Finneas and Lukas Graham all posted on Instagram that they were leaving Ed Sheeran's tour. It happened within hours of each other.
What set it off
Macklemore was cut from the Loop Tour after shouting "Free Palestine!" at MetLife Stadium on Sept. 5, while introducing his protest song "Hind's Hall."
“criticism of Israel, criticism of apartheid, being against genocide, it in no way is criticism of you”
A stadium owner made the call
Macklemore said venues told the promoter they would bar him, rallied by Robert Kraft, whose Kraft Group owns Gillette Stadium. Kraft cited a broader history of antisemitic rhetoric.
Sheeran points at the promoters
Sheeran said the removal was the promoter's decision, not his, and that he spoke with the venues all week to build a bridge. The decision was final.
“Macklemore coming off tour was the promoter's decision, it was not mine”
Ireland's history, cited twice
Rowe and Beoga both anchored their exits in Irish history. Rowe wrote about genocide, forced famine and violent occupation, and signed off with "free Palestine."
“I cannot stand by and allow billionaires to use their position of power to silence the rightful voices”
Money and the microphone
Lukas Graham framed it as a question of who controls the conversation, and ended their statement with three watermelon emoji, a symbol of Palestinian solidarity.
“Nobody's bank balance should decide who gets to speak or which suffering we're allowed to acknowledge”
Macklemore on the word itself
He argued that collapsing criticism of Israel into hatred of Jewish people does not keep anyone safe. It shields a state from being held to account.
“Antisemitism is real. And that is exactly why the word matters too much to be used as a shield”
"I am not complicit"
Sheeran says fans do not come to his shows for a political forum, and that there is room for multiple approaches to peace. He chose diplomacy over a public stand.
“I choose to use my fame and platform to be a place of safety and sanctuary”
Ten shows, one hole in the bill
Macklemore was booked for eight of Sheeran's 10 remaining dates. The tour resumes Saturday in Philadelphia, with Gillette Stadium still ahead.
The key point
When a billionaire venue owner can decide who opens a stadium show, neutrality stops being a neutral position, and the rest of the bill gets to answer for it.
