‘Nobody’s happy,’ experts say, as Ed Sheeran tour controversy rolls on

By AP

Ed Sheeran’s tour of North and South America has been roiled by the decision this week to drop Macklemore as an opener because of the rapper’s onstage pro-Palestinian comments. Since then, all of Sheeran’s other supporting acts have dropped out, including a group that plays with Sheeran during part of the show.

Sheeran, who is scheduled to perform Saturday in Philadelphia, said the decision to cut Macklemore from the Loop Tour was the promoter’s, not his own. The “Thrift Shop” rapper exclaimed “Free Palestine” during the Sept. 5 date in New Jersey.

Ray Waddell, chief content director for Oak View Group, the parent company of Pollstar, says a tour becoming engulfed in controversy over comments made on stage doesn’t happen often.

“No, I wouldn’t say it’s common. Most people, when there’s this much at stake, not speaking to the specifics of this tour, it’s a major stadium tour with multiple acts and one of the highest-grossing headliners in history, period, leading the way, they tended to want to avoid these kind of things,” said Waddell.

Macklemore has said his removal was the result of an effort led by Robert Kraft, the billionaire owner of the New England Patriots. His Kraft Group also owns Gillette Stadium, where the NFL team plays and where Sheeran is scheduled to perform later this month. Kraft’s involvement was implicitly cited in some of the statements from the supporting acts who left Sheeran’s tour Tuesday, decrying the influence of money.

On Wednesday, Macklemore announced he would donate $1 million from his net earnings from the tour to six organisations helping Palestinians, including the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA. He challenged Kraft to match the donation.

Kraft said in an Instagram post shortly afterward that Sheeran contacted him before Macklemore put out his statement to ask for a $2 million match to aid “in the region.”

Waddell from Pollstar says he believes the tour will proceed as normal.