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Macklemore says he has been removed from tour with Ed Sheeran after Gaza comment

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Cite

Cooper-Fiske, C. (2026, September 14). Macklemore says he has been removed from tour with Ed Sheeran after Gaza comment. Evening Standard. https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/music/gaza-ed-sheeran-new-jersey-west-bank-pink-b1296975.html

Dated when The Aporia collected the article, usually within hours of publication. Check the original for its exact date and byline.

Evening Standard · collected 2026-09-14 · by Casey Cooper-Fiske

Quick Summary

Macklemore announced on Instagram that he has been removed from Ed Sheeran’s tour following comments made during a concert at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey where he expressed support for Palestinians and condemned the violence against them. He claims Robert Kraft pressured Sheeran to remove him due to his stance, which contradicted Sheeran's public policy of neutrality on political issues. Macklemore emphasizes that Palestinian civilians are suffering while he faces career consequences, contrasting their situations with those of artists and celebrities.
Written by AI on 2026-09-14, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

Macklemore was dropped from Ed Sheeran’s US tour after making pro-Palestinian comments at concerts. The rapper was removed following his chants of “Free Palestine” and criticism of Israel's actions as apartheid and genocide during performances in New Jersey. Promoters for the tour, Messina Touring Group, confirmed they received notifications from American venues that Macklemore would not be allowed to perform, potentially resulting in tour cancellation. Robert Kraft, owner of Gillette Stadium where Sheeran was scheduled to play, reportedly pressured Sheeran over Macklemore’s involvement. In response, Charlotte Church criticized Ed Sheeran during a concert for prioritizing profits over addressing the Gaza conflict.

Written for “Macklemore Dropped From Ed Sheeran Tour” on 2026-10-30, grounded in this article and the 120 other(s) covering the same event.

Story

📰 Macklemore Dropped From Ed Sheeran Tour
Entertainment · 121 article(s) covering the same event. Compare every outlet's account →

Compared with similar articles

This article reads unscored and hedges 4% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.
Evening Standard
Hedges 1 of 34 claims Outlet record 65/100
BBC News
Hedges 3 of 34 claims Outlet record 69/100
Al Jazeera
Hedges 0 of 3 claims Outlet record 60/100
CBC News
⚖️ Leans left Hedges 1 of 45 claims Outlet record 60/100
Evening Standard
Hedges 0 of 26 claims Outlet record 65/100
NBC News
Hedges 5 of 49 claims Outlet record 60/100
Global News
⚖️ Leans strongly left Hedges 1 of 49 claims Outlet record 63/100
National Post
Hedges 2 of 24 claims Outlet record 60/100
New York Post
Hedges 0 of 14 claims Outlet record 66/100
“While both articles discuss Macklemore being removed from Ed Sheeran's tour, Article B covers subsequent events where other artists dropped out of the tour in solidarity with Macklemore, which is a different specific incident.”
Evening Standard
Hedges 0 of 13 claims Outlet record 65/100
How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
28
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
4%
1 of 28 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
withheld
no quote in the article backed the model's score
Publisher signals
65/100
Evening Standard's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
121
Entertainment
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
Analyzed 2026-09-14 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

Evening Standard · 7769 article(s) · 62 correction(s) detected
Running correction rate · 62 correction(s)

Who wrote this

Casey Cooper-Fiske
64 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
🔮 The New Jersey-born singer replied: “Well, after I wrote Just Kids, because Robert asked me to write it hours before he died, I promised him I would.
🔮 The programme’s opened with George Fouracres as Mr Burnham and Emma Sidi as Liverpool mayor Steve Rotheram sitting on the Gogglebox sofa, with the Prime Minister telling his friend he had “all the types of crisps a relatable bloke would have in their house”.
🔮 Sunday’s results show also saw the surprise announcement of Strictly’s first triple dance-off, which will take place during next week’s Halloween episode.
🔮 In the last picture, Murray could be seen kissing Douglas on the cheek while holding her baby bump, with the caption: “The exciting news is finally here.
🔮 The 32-year-old had vowed to change ticket prices for his Proper Massive Stadium Tour ’27 when replying to an Instagram post which claimed tickets would cost up to £130.75 for standing, and now appears to have lowered prices.
🔮 “And I’ve got some advice for you, going forward I would continue to have a rib injury.
🔮 “And I’ve got some advice for you, going forward I would continue to have a rib injury.”
🔮 “The standing will not be split as well, I had no idea about it.
🔮 The 41-year-old, who is partnered with professional dancer Kai Widdrington, missed week four of the BBC dancing show after sustaining a fractured rib, but has confirmed she will take part in this Saturday’s show.
🔮 During the competition the members would regularly “manifest” different things to encourage themselves, so when it came to choosing a name for the band they knew the word felt right.
Also by Casey Cooper-Fiske
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 64 articles by Casey Cooper-Fiske →

Topics

Gaza Instagram Israel New Jersey Palestinian

Subjects

Macklemore PERSON · 4× Israel GPE · 3× Palestinian NORP · 3× Pink PERSON · 3× Sheeran PERSON · 3× Ed Sheeran PERSON · 2× Faith ORG · 2× Gaza GPE · 2× Instagram ORG · 2× Kneecap ORG · 2×

Narrative

The 43-year-old, whose real name is Benjamin Haggerty, said during a concert at the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey that he wanted people in Gaza and the West Bank to know they had not been forgotten, and added in a post on Instagram that he hoped it was not the end of his friendship with Sheeran.
framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-09-14
🔮 People are being killed today, and people will be killed tomorrow.
2026-09-14 · Evening Standard
Macklemore says he has been removed from tour with Ed Sheeran after Gaza comment · assertive framing

Claims (28 extracted, 1 hedged)

The 43-year-old, whose real name is Benjamin Haggerty, said during a concert at the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey that he wanted people in Gaza and the West Bank to know they had not been forgotten, and added in a post on Instagram that he hoped it was not the end of his friendship with Sheeran. asserted
it → say → Sheeran
In a post on Monday, Macklemore said: “I’m going to speak from the heart and share the truth. asserted
I → say → truth
Ed Sheeran and his team have made the decision to remove me from The Loop tour. asserted
Sheeran → make → tour
“But before I get into it, I want to say something that should be obvious. asserted
that → get → something
In this moment I think it matters. asserted
it → think → moment
We have careers, money, opportunities, safety and audiences around the world. asserted
We → have → world
“Whatever consequences any of us face for what we say, we get to go home to our families. asserted
we → face → families
The men, women and children who have been killed, starved, displaced and forced to live through unimaginable violence. asserted
who → kill → violence
“More than 20,000 children have been killed in Gaza alone. asserted
children → kill → Gaza
People are being killed today, and people will be killed tomorrow. asserted
people → kill → ?
I want to make sure that as I tell this story, we don’t lose sight of that.” asserted
we → want → that
Macklemore went on to claim that Robert Kraft, whose Kraft Group owns the Gillette Stadium that they were due to play in, had contacted Sheeran and told him they would not be able to play unless he was removed from the tour. uncertain
he → go → tour
He added: “Ed was in a f***** up position. asserted
Ed → add → position
He knew it. asserted
He → know → it
His typical apolitical stance was being challenged in a way it never had been before. asserted
it → challenge → way
“He told me that the words ‘Free Palestine’ and the image of the Palestinian flag were hurtful to a lot of people he spoke with. asserted
he → tell → people
“I told him that if those words were more offensive than 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. asserted
I → tell → stood
Read More “But he couldn’t get past his public facing, ‘I don’t take sides’.” asserted
I → read → sides
Macklemore was supported by Irish rap trio Kneecap and singer Paloma Faith on Instagram. asserted
Macklemore → support → Instagram
Faith commented: “You are a rare and important voice, thank you for existing. asserted
You → comment → you
In a post on Friday clarifying her repost of the petition, Pink said “Palestinians deserve a future that honours their humanity and their aspirations”. asserted
that → clarify → humanity
She added: “Last weekend he stood in front of a stadium full of music-loving families, with violent images from a war on the screens, dedicated a song to the movement of his choice, and then took the mic to tell all of the Jews in the stadium that it wasn’t about them. asserted
it → add → them
“You don’t get to decide that for us. asserted
You → get → us
That’s what prompted my repost.” asserted
what → ’ → repost
Pink went on to say she does not speak for Israel or for any government. asserted
she → go → government
Macklemore was among more than 1,100 artists, musicians and cultural workers who called for a boycott of the Eurovision Song Contest this year over the inclusion of Israel. asserted
who → call → Israel
The letter, co-ordinated by campaign group No Music For Genocide, was also signed by artists including Faith, Massive Attack, Paul Weller and Kneecap. asserted
letter → co → Faith
The Kraft Group and representatives for Sheeran have been contacted for comment. asserted
Group → contact → comment
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