All supporting acts for English pop star Ed Sheeran’s upcoming US Loop Tour have quit in solidarity with rapper Macklemore, who was dropped from the tour for supporting Palestine.
asserted
who → support → Palestine
Some of the other artists are Irish and have cited their own country’s historical experience of suffering under occupation as the reason for their opposition to Israel’s illegal occupation of the Palestinian territories.
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Some → cite → territories
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who → cut → Macklemore
Sheeran blames US tour promoter for dropping Macklemore
Macklemore, whose real name is Ben Haggerty, drew criticism after saying “Free Palestine” and making other pro-Palestine comments while on tour with Sheeran at the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey earlier this month.
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name → blame → Jersey
He was ultimately dropped from the remainder of Sheeran’s tour, partly under pressure from the billionaire owner of one of the venues, the Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, Robert Kraft.
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He → drop → Foxborough
On Tuesday, Sheeran blamed the tour’s US promoter.
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Sheeran → blame → promoter
“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.
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Sheeran → inform → everything
“I spoke with the venues at length all week to try and build a bridge.”
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I → speak → bridge
Who are the musicians and bands who have also quit the tour?
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who → quit → tour
Which artists are pulling out and why?
In statements on their social media platforms shortly after Sheeran’s announcement, American singer-songwriter Finneas, Irish singer Aaron Rowe, Irish band Beoga and Danish pop band Lukas Graham announced they would be dropping out of the tour, which is scheduled to begin on September 19 in Philadelphia.
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which → pull → Philadelphia
Sheeran is set to kick off his North American tour at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia on Saturday.
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Sheeran → set → Saturday
Finneas, US singer-songwriter
Finneas, who was scheduled to open for Sheeran in some American cities during the tour, announced on Instagram on Tuesday that he had decided to withdraw from the tour after Macklemore’s expulsion.
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he → schedule → expulsion
He and his sister, the multi-Grammy and Academy Award-winning pop singer Billie Eilish, have talked about their Irish family roots and have been outspoken about their support for Palestine before.
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He → win → Palestine
“Artists must not be silenced when they speak up for the oppressed,” he said on Instagram on Tuesday.
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he → silence → Tuesday
“I stand with Palestine and its people,” he added.
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he → stand → Palestine
Aaron Rowe, Irish singer
On Tuesday, Rowe, who performed as part of Sheeran’s Australian leg of the tour earlier this year and was to do 10 more dates in the US, said he has also decided to withdraw.
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he → perform → US
“I don’t take the decision lightly,” he said on Instagram.
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he → take → Instagram
“Ed has been a friend to me and has changed my life, I could never thank him enough for this,” he acknowledged.
uncertain
he → change → this
“But as Irish people, we know all too well about genocide, forced famine and violent occupation.
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we → know → genocide
I cannot stand by and allow billionaires to use their position of power to silence the rightful voices of those who speak up against Israeli genocide and who highlight the savage murder of children.
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who → stand → children
I would lose all respect for myself to carry on as normal,” he added.
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he → lose → myself
Yet on Tuesday, the group announced on Instagram that it would also quit the US leg of the tour “following the silencing of Macklemore by zionist lobbies”.
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it → announce → lobbies
“We are a traditional Irish band who never saw ourselves playing in stadiums of that size and that opportunity is not lost on us.
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opportunity → see → us
We have been friends with Ed for over 10 years now and will continue to be.
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We → continue → years
We believe in dialogue as a means of progressing the plight of the Palestinian people,” they added.
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they → believe → people
Lukas Graham, Danish band
Announcing their withdrawal from the tour in an Instagram statement on Tuesday, lead singer Lukas Forchhammer wrote: “It’s hard to watch families in other parts of the world burying the people they love.
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they → announce → people
We should be able to speak about war, about civilians being killed, about children who deserve to grow up.
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who → speak → children
Wherever they live.
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they → live → ?
Whatever flag flies over them.
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flag → fly → them
“Money doesn’t give you the right to own the conversation.
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Money → give → conversation
Nobody’s bank balance should decide who gets to speak or which suffering we’re allowed to acknowledge,” he said.
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he → decide → suffering
How did the Macklemore controversy start?
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controversy → start → ?
Macklemore opened a Sheeran show at the New Jersey MetLife Stadium earlier this month with a speech about Palestine.
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Macklemore → open → Palestine
He said: “The people all the way in Gaza to the occupied West Bank know that we have not forgotten about them.
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we → say → them
I say free Palestine.
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I → say → Palestine
I say free Lebanon.
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I → say → Lebanon
The speech triggered an immediate backlash, and the Israeli-American Council started a petition to have Macklemore dropped from the tour.
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Macklemore → trigger → tour
Macklemore defended his statements, and also his performance of the song Hind’s Hall – dedicated to Hind Rajab, the five-year-old girl killed by Israeli forces while stranded inside a car in Gaza – by stating that “wanting all humans to be treated equal should never be controversial”.
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humans → defend → Gaza
The students occupied the hall and renamed it “Hind’s Hall”.
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students → occupy → it
How did Robert Kraft get involved in the row?
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Kraft → involve → row
…and 36 more, not listed.
The Aporia
