Ed Sheeran blames US tour promoter for dropping Macklemore

The English musician said it was important to “set out some facts” after US rapper Macklemore voiced support for Palestine.

Ed Sheeran (right) said unlike Macklemore (left), he hasn't spoken publicly about Israel's war on Gaza but said 'it doesn't mean I don't care' [File: AP Photo]

Pop star Ed Sheeran has blamed the promoter of his United States tour for dropping Macklemore after the rapper voiced support for Palestine.

In a series of six slides on an Instagram post, Sheeran on Tuesday said it was important to “set out some facts”.

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The decision to remove Macklemore from the US Loop Tour, Sheeran said, came after venues said they would pull future shows if they included Macklemore. The rapper, whose real name is Ben Haggerty, drew criticism after making “Free Palestine” and other pro-Palestine comments while on tour with Sheeran at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey earlier this month.

“I was informed that this stance was based on how Macklemore conveyed part of this message during his performance, rather than on everything that was said,” Sheeran wrote. “I spoke with the venues at length all week to try and build a bridge.”

Some musical artists, including supporting acts, said later on Tuesday that they were quitting Sheeran’s tour after Macklemore’s ouster. They included Irish singer-songwriter Aaron Rowe, Irish band Beoga, Danish band Lukas Graham and musician Finneas. They voiced support for Macklemore and expressed solidarity with Palestinians.

Robert Kraft, the owner of the National Football League’s New England Patriots, confirmed he pressured Sheeran to drop Macklemore from the tour. The billionaire said Macklemore was barred from appearing at the team’s Gillette Stadium in Massachusetts during a performance later this month due to what he described as a “broader history of antisemitic rhetoric and imagery”.

In an Instagram post, Macklemore said Sheeran told him Kraft had organised a boycott among other stadium owners unless he was thrown off the tour for his pro-Palestine remarks.

“I told him that if those words were more offensive than the tens of thousands of Palestinian children being killed by Israel, then there was a fundamental disconnect between where those people stood and where I stood,” Macklemore said of his conversation with Sheeran.

‘I am not complicit’

Sheeran said the decision to boot Macklemore off the tour was the promoter’s, not his. The British musician added that he was “appalled by the conflict between Israel and Palestine”.

“I am not complicit. I have my personal views on the devastating conflict. Just because I choose not to speak publicly, it doesn’t mean I don’t have them, and it doesn’t mean I don’t care. Nor does it mean I don’t support causes in my own, personal way,” Sheeran said.

Kraft, in a statement to Al Jazeera, said the decision to ban Macklemore from his venue wasn’t about “diminishing the suffering of innocent Palestinians” but argued “advocacy should not come at the expense of the Jewish community or obscure the responsibility of Hamas”.

Macklemore, who described Sheeran as a close friend, said the two artists had discussed the issue over the past week.

“He couldn’t get past his public-facing, ‘I don’t take sides,’” Macklemore wrote, referring to Sheeran’s reluctance to take a public stance on Israel’s war on Gaza.

Sheeran explained why he doesn’t use his “professional platform for politics”, writing that audiences who attend his shows “do not expect a political forum”.

“I respect Macklemore’s strength of purpose to stand up and shout for what he believes,” Sheeran said. “However, there is room for multiple approaches to the same end: peace. I choose to use my fame and platform to be a place of safety and sanctuary, to maintain diplomacy and keep conversations open, not closed.”

这位英国音乐人表示，在美国说唱歌手 Macklemore 公开支持巴勒斯坦之后，有必要“阐明一些事实”。

艾德·希兰（右）表示，与麦克莫尔（左）不同，他没有公开谈论以色列对加沙的战争，但他表示“这并不意味着我不关心”。[图片：美联社]

流行歌手艾德·希兰指责其美国巡演的主办方在说唱歌手麦克莫尔公开支持巴勒斯坦后将其解约。

周二，希兰在 Instagram 上发布了一系列六张幻灯片，称“阐明一些事实”很重要。

埃及总统塞西会见穆罕默德·本·萨勒曼，支持沙特关于保障红海航行安全的呼吁（共4条，此为第1条）。

美国众议院议长迈克·约翰逊拒绝暂停人工智能计划，警告称将失去对中国的优势（共4条，此为第2条）。

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希兰表示，之所以决定将麦克莫尔从美国Loop巡演中移除，是因为一些演出场地表示，如果麦克莫尔继续参演，他们将取消未来的演出。这位说唱歌手的真名是本·哈格蒂，本月初在与希兰一同巡演期间，于新泽西州大都会人寿体育场发表了“解放巴勒斯坦”等支持巴勒斯坦的言论，引发了广泛批评。

“我被告知，这种立场是基于Macklemore在表演中传达的部分信息，而不是基于全部内容，”希兰写道。“我整周都与演出场地进行了长时间的沟通，试图弥合分歧。”

周二晚些时候，一些音乐人，包括一些暖场嘉宾，宣布在麦克莫尔被踢出巡演后退出希兰的巡演。他们包括爱尔兰创作歌手亚伦·罗、爱尔兰乐队Beoga、丹麦乐队Lukas Graham以及音乐人菲尼亚斯。他们公开支持麦克莫尔，并声援巴勒斯坦人民。

美国国家橄榄球联盟新英格兰爱国者队老板罗伯特·克拉夫特证实，他​​曾向艾德·希兰施压，要求他将麦克莫尔从巡演中除名。这位亿万富翁表示，由于麦克莫尔“长期以来发表过反犹太主义言论和图像”，他被禁止在本月晚些时候于球队位于马萨诸塞州的吉列体育场演出。

Macklemore 在 Instagram 上发帖称，Sheeran 告诉他，除非他因支持巴勒斯坦的言论而被踢出巡演，否则 Kraft 将组织其他体育场馆老板抵制他。

“我告诉他，如果这些话比以色列杀害数万名巴勒斯坦儿童更令人反感，那么这些人与我的立场之间存在根本性的脱节，”麦克莫尔在谈到他与希兰的对话时说道。

“我没有参与其中”

希兰表示，将麦克莫尔踢出巡演阵容是主办方的决定，并非他个人的决定。这位英国音乐人还补充说，他对以色列和巴勒斯坦之间的冲突感到“震惊”。

“我并非同谋。我对这场毁灭性的冲突有自己的看法。仅仅因为我选择不公开表态，并不意味着我没有自己的看法，也不意味着我不关心。这也不意味着我不会以自己的方式支持相关事业，”希兰说道。

克拉夫特在接受半岛电视台采访时表示，禁止麦克莫尔在他的场地演出并非为了“减轻无辜巴勒斯坦人的苦难”，而是认为“倡导不应以牺牲犹太社区的利益为代价，也不应掩盖哈马斯的责任”。

Macklemore称Sheeran是他的好朋友，并表示过去一周两人一直在讨论这个问题。

Macklemore 写道：“他始终无法摆脱他公开宣称的‘我不选边站’的态度”，指的是 Sheeran 不愿就以色列对加沙的战争公开表明立场。

希兰解释了他为什么不利用自己的“职业平台谈论政治”，他写道，参加他演出的观众“并不期待一个政治论坛”。

“我尊重Macklemore为自己的信仰挺身而出、大声疾呼的坚定信念，”希兰说道。“然而，通往和平的道路并非只有一条，它可以有多种途径。我选择利用我的名气和影响力，营造一个安全庇护所，维护外交关系，保持对话开放，而不是封闭。”