Ed Sheeran performs in New Orleans, Louisiana on April 29, 2023.
Erica Goldring | Getty Images
Pop star Ed Sheeran apologized on Saturday for his handling of the controversy that erupted this week after rapper Macklemore was removed from his opening act over his comments about Palestine.
Breaking his silence on the issue, the British singer denounced Israel’s treatment of Gaza residents as “unfair”.
Sheeran told an audience in Philadelphia, where Macklemore was performing for the first time since he was removed from the tour, “I had to make a difficult decision and I made a mistake and I am truly sorry.”
At the beginning of his concert at Lincoln Financial Field, Sheeran called the October 2023 Hamas attack that killed 1,200 Israelis “horrific.” But he said Israel’s subsequent war in Gaza, which left thousands dead and nearly the entire population displaced, was “catastrophic, unjust and disproportionate.”
Mr. Sheeran also denounced “systemic injustice” in the West Bank, where Israel’s right-wing coalition government has allowed the massive expansion of Jewish settlements.
The pop star’s opening statement on Saturday was a marked change from earlier in the week, when Sheeran posted on Instagram that his concert audience was “not expecting a political debate.”
Controversy surrounding Sheeran has been brewing ever since Macklemore posted on Instagram that New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft had told him that he would not be allowed to perform at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, where he will perform on September 25th and 26th.
Macklemore said Kraft and other stadium owners told Sheeran they would not allow him to perform at their venue if he remained on tour after Macklemore said “Liberate Palestine” during a Sept. 4 concert at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. Other support acts on the tour subsequently left in solidarity with Macklemore.
Despite acceding to stadium owners’ requests for Macklemore to be ejected, Sheeran said Saturday that he was “deeply concerned” that concert venues were scrutinizing performers. “Things like this happen in many places around the world where I perform, but they should never happen in the free world,” Sheeran said.
But the controversy didn’t matter to those who spoke to Reuters before Sheeran took the stage on Saturday.
Joy VanRuler, 55, a teacher in Pottstown, Pennsylvania, said she supports both artists.
“It doesn’t have to be political,” VanRuler said in an interview outside the stadium in Philadelphia. “This is about music and we support both, and it’s all good.”
Javier Hernandez, 62, a designer from Allentown, Pennsylvania, whose daughter invited him to the concert, said Macklemore “shouldn’t have talked about politics.” “It’s giving the public an opportunity to speak out and disrupt the whole situation. He should have been left alone.”
Ahead of Sheeran’s performance, dozens of pro-Palestinian demonstrators gathered about half a mile from the concert venue. Organizers said they were here to talk to people about the situation on the ground in Gaza and highlight local organizations that advocate for Palestinians.
