Key Takeaways
- Ms. Rachel said Ed Sheeran “caved” by continuing his Loop Tour without Macklemore after the rapper’s pro-Palestinian MetLife Stadium set sparked backlash.
- Sheeran said promoters and stadium operators forced the decision, while Ms. Rachel argued that “silence during a genocide is not neutral” and accused the industry of treating Palestinian children’s lives as less worthy.
- Macklemore blamed pressure from Patriots owner Robert Kraft and other venues, while Dearborn Mayor Abdullah Hammoud invited him to headline a free city-sponsored concert.
Ms. Rachel has a blunt assessment of Ed Sheeran’s decision to continue his stadium tour without Macklemore: He “caved.”
According to TMZ, the massively popular children’s educator tore into Sheeran after Macklemore was dropped from the remaining U.S. dates of the Loop Tour amid backlash over his pro-Palestinian performance at MetLife Stadium.
In a series of social media posts, Ms. Rachel argued that Sheeran had been handed an opportunity to stand behind an artist facing pressure for speaking about Gaza—and failed the test.
“He had an opportunity to show that we won’t be bullied into punishing people for supporting Palestine,” wrote Ms. Rachel, whose real name is Rachel Griffin Accurso. “Instead, he caved to people who refuse to accept what the world knows.”
Macklemore opened for Sheeran at the New Jersey stadium on Sept. 4 and 5, using his set to shout “Free Palestine,” condemn ICE and perform “Hind’s Hall,” his protest song named after six-year-old Palestinian child Hind Rajab.
The performance featured footage of the war in Gaza and pro-Palestinian campus demonstrations, turning a blockbuster pop tour into the latest battleground over political speech.
The response moved quickly from public criticism to behind-the-scenes pressure. Macklemore claimed New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft, whose company owns Gillette Stadium, objected to his scheduled appearances there and rallied other stadium operators against him.
According to Macklemore, Sheeran told him the venues had effectively issued an ultimatum: Remove Macklemore or lose access to their stadiums.
Messina Touring Group confirmed that multiple venues would not allow concerts to proceed with Macklemore on the lineup. The promoter said canceling those shows could affect hundreds of thousands of fans.
Sheeran subsequently said the decision belonged to the promoter and that his contract, crew, and ticket holders left him unable to prevent it.
Ms. Rachel wasn’t buying that explanation.
“Imagine looking back 20 years from now at yourself kicking someone off a tour because they spoke out during a genocide that has killed over 20,000 kids,” she wrote.
She then made the racial implications of that silence explicit, arguing that the killing of more than 20,000 white children would have artists “shouting about it at their concerts.”
“Treating some children’s lives as less worthy of outrage is racist,” she added. “Silence during a genocide is not neutral.”
Kraft has denied that the decision was intended to suppress support for Palestinians. He said Macklemore’s recent performance and what he characterized as a broader history of “antisemitic rhetoric and imagery” crossed the line for Gillette Stadium.
Macklemore, however, said Sheeran told him that both the words “Free Palestine” and the sight of Palestinian flags had upset people consulted about the performances.
The removal has already produced a striking counteroffer. According to The Detroit News, Dearborn Mayor Abdullah Hammoud invited Macklemore to headline a free concert sponsored by the Michigan city, writing, “If they don’t want you performing in their stadiums, you’re always welcome in Dearborn.”
Macklemore has spent years placing political advocacy inside his music, from supporting marriage equality with “Same Love” to releasing “Hind’s Hall” in 2024.
