Macklemore pledges $1m in tour earnings to Palestinian groups

The rapper also challenged Robert Kraft to match the donation as fallout from his removal from Ed Sheeran’s tour grows.

Macklemore performs at Rod Laver Arena on May 15, 2024 in Melbourne, Australia [File: Morgan Hancock/Getty Images]

Rapper Macklemore says he will donate the entire $1m he earned from singer Ed Sheeran’s Loop Tour to organisations supporting Palestinians, days after he was dropped from the tour over his support for Palestine.

Macklemore, whose real name is Ben Haggerty, announced the donation on Instagram on Wednesday, saying the money would go to six groups working directly to support Palestinians. He also called on pro-Israel billionaire Robert Kraft , owner of the New England Patriots, to match it after Kraft confirmed on Tuesday that he had barred Macklemore from performing at Gillette Stadium in the US state of Massachusetts.

list 1 of 4 Macklemore cut from Ed Sheeran tour for pro-Palestine stance

list 2 of 4 Who is Robert Kraft, pro-Israel billionaire who cancelled Macklemore?

list 3 of 4 Ed Sheeran blames US tour promoter for dropping Macklemore

list 4 of 4 Which artists have pulled out of Ed Sheeran’s tour over Palestine?

“Whatever we disagree about, perhaps we can agree on this: Palestinian lives are worth protecting,” Macklemore wrote. “A Palestinian life is no less valuable than any other life on this earth.”

In a statement on Wednesday evening, Kraft said that before Macklemore issued the challenge, Sheeran had called and asked him to commit $2m in humanitarian aid to the region. Kraft said Sheeran now planned to approach other venue owners in an effort to raise more money.

“I believe deeply that all lives are worth protecting,” Kraft said.

Macklemore’s announcement comes as the fallout over his removal from Sheeran’s tour continues to grow . Macklemore said on Monday that he was dropped from the remaining United States dates after using his performances at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey to speak in support of Palestinians.

All of the supporting acts for Sheeran’s upcoming US Loop Tour have now pulled out in solidarity with the rapper. Some of the artists are Irish and pointed to their own country’s history of occupation in explaining their decision to withdraw.

Sheeran has said the decision to remove Macklemore was ultimately made not by him but by the tour promoter.

Kraft later said he had opposed allowing the rapper to perform, citing what he described as Macklemore’s history of “antisemitic rhetoric and imagery”.

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 that “advocacy should not come at the expense of the Jewish community or obscure the responsibility of Hamas”.

In his latest statement on Wednesday, Macklemore said he wanted to pull the conversation away from himself and the controversy surrounding the tour.

“That is what this has always been about. Not me. Not a tour. Not the headlines or the controversy,” he wrote. “It is about Palestinians’ right to freedom, dignity and safety in their own homeland.”

He also acknowledged that donating money carried far less risk than the work being done by people in Gaza and those organising in support of Palestinians.

“Writing a check is one of the least costly forms of solidarity available to me,” he wrote. “I am doing it because I can, and because these organizations are doing the work while much of the world debates it.”

He ended with a call for people to keep paying attention.

“When the news cycle moves on, which it will, don’t move with it. Free Palestine.”

随着罗伯特·克拉夫特被艾德·希兰的巡演除名一事的影响不断扩大，这位说唱歌手还向他发起挑战，要求他捐出与希兰捐款数额相同的款项。

2024年5月15日，Macklemore在澳大利亚墨尔本罗德·拉沃竞技场演出。[图片：Morgan Hancock/Getty Images]

说唱歌手 Macklemore 表示，他将把从歌手 Ed Sheeran 的 Loop 巡回演唱会中赚到的 100 万美元全部捐赠给支持巴勒斯坦人的组织。此前几天，他因支持巴勒斯坦而被该巡演除名。

麦克莫尔（真名本·哈格蒂）周三在Instagram上宣布了这笔捐款，称这笔钱将捐给六个直接支持巴勒斯坦人的组织。他还呼吁亲以色列的亿万富翁、新英格兰爱国者队老板罗伯特·克拉夫特也捐出同等数额的款项。此前，克拉夫特于周二证实，他已禁止麦克莫尔在美国马萨诸塞州的吉列体育场演出。

麦克莫尔因支持巴勒斯坦的立场而被艾德·希兰巡演除名（共4条，第1条）

列表 2/4：罗伯特·克拉夫特是谁？这位亲以色列的亿万富翁曾取消了 Macklemore 的演出。

列表 3/4：艾德·希兰指责美国巡演主办方取消了与麦克莫尔的合作

列出 4 件因巴勒斯坦问题而退出艾德·希兰巡回演唱会的艺人（共 4 件）

“无论我们在其他方面存在分歧，或许我们可以在这一点上达成共识：巴勒斯坦人的生命值得保护，”麦克莫尔写道。“巴勒斯坦人的生命与地球上任何其他生命一样宝贵。”

克拉夫特周三晚间发表声明称，在麦克莫尔发起挑战之前，希兰曾致电请求他承诺向该地区提供200万美元的人道主义援助。克拉夫特表示，希兰现在计划联系其他场馆老板，以筹集更多资金。

“我深信所有生命都值得保护，”克拉夫特说。

Macklemore的声明发布之际，他被Ed Sheeran取消巡演资格一事的影响仍在持续发酵。Macklemore周一表示，他在新泽西州大都会人寿体育场演出时公开声援巴勒斯坦人，之后便被取消了剩余的美国巡演场次。

为了声援希兰，他即将举行的美国Loop巡演的所有暖场嘉宾都已退出。其中一些艺人是爱尔兰人，他们以本国曾遭受占领的历史为由，解释了他们退出巡演的决定。

希兰表示，取消麦克莫尔演出资格的决定最终不是他做出的，而是巡演主办方做出的。

克拉夫特后来表示，他反对让这位说唱歌手表演，理由是麦克莫尔有“反犹太主义言论和形象”的历史。

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在周三发表的最新声明中表示，他希望将讨论的焦点从他本人以及围绕巡演的争议上转移开来。

“这始终是问题的关键所在。不是我，不是巡演，也不是头条新闻或争议，”他写道。“这关乎巴勒斯坦人民在自己的家园享有自由、尊严和安全的权利。”

他还承认，捐款的风险远小于加沙人民和那些组织起来支持巴勒斯坦人的人们所做的工作。

“对我来说，捐款是成本最低的声援方式之一，”他写道。“我这样做是因为我有能力这样做，也因为当世界上大部分人还在争论不休的时候，这些组织正在默默地做着实事。”

最后，他呼吁大家继续关注。

“当新闻热点转移时（而它终将转移），不要随之转移。解放巴勒斯坦。”