PUBLISHED ONSeptember 26, 20265:05 AM
Ed Sheeran has cancelled two concerts at Robert Kraft’s NFL stadium amid the swirling controversy surrounding support act Macklemore’s public Free Palestine declaration.
The Shape Of You hitmaker has attracted criticism after his support act was dropped from the Loop live shows after declaring his support for the people of Palestine, with Ed insisting that his decision to axe Macklemore wasn’t his.
Instead, Ed appeared to lay the blame at wealthy venue owners like Kraft, who had banned the rapper from performing at his venue and urged other moguls to follow his lead.
Now, Ed has made the decision to axe his scheduled concerts at Kraft’s Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, on Friday (Sept 25) and Saturday night.
However, the cancellation is not down to the row surrounding Macklemore’s involvement on the tour.
Instead, it’s down to the bad weather expected to hit the area during the scheduled shows.
In a statement, Kraft said: “Stadium and tour management, along with public safety officials, have been closely monitoring the weather forecast over the past week.
“Due to the severe weather forecast throughout the weekend, the tour has made the difficult decision to cancel the Ed Sheeran concerts at Gillette Stadium.
“The decision was made with the safety of fans, staff and everyone involved in the shows as the top priority. Refunds are available now at the point of purchase.
“Ticketholders who purchased through Ticketmaster will be automatically refunded.”
The tour promoter AEG Presents also confirmed that Ed’s concerts had been “cancelled due to a severe storm as of five mins ago”.
Amid the controversy, Ed struggled to control his emotions as he spoke to the crowd in Philadelphia at the first gig since the row broke out.
He said: “This is not usually how I would open the show, but before I play some songs tonight, I hope it’s okay if I say a few words.
“I’m used to my music being criticised … This week the criticism was about something much more important … I am making mistakes and I am so so sorry.
“I don’t want to disappoint fans, and I’ve never wanted to be an activist musician, but this has put me in the middle of an important, compassionate argument about freedom of speech and the most complex political issue on the planet.”
In the wake of the row, Macklemore has announced his own Free Palestine tour, which he will begin in Dublin, Ireland, on Oct 26 before performing in Paris on Oct 29 and London on Oct 30, with North American dates to follow.
The concerts will bring Macklemore together with special guests and raise money for organisations providing humanitarian assistance and other support for Palestinians.
Announcing the shows on Instagram, Macklemore said: “If these last couple of weeks have shown us anything, it’s that something has shifted over the last three years. There has been a collective awakening around Palestinian liberation, the power of billionaires that try to censor that call, and what we expect from artists right now.
“It’s 2026. Being apolitical during a genocide doesn’t work anymore. People are asking artists to show up, educate themselves and be in community.
“To use the stage for more than <a href="https://comicvibe.com/lompoc-chalks-returns-october-2-4-with-40-artists-live-entertainment-and-a-new-meet-the-artists-kick-off/” title=”Lompoc Chalks Returns October 2–4 with 40 Artists, Live Entertainment, and a New Meet the Artists Kick Off”>entertainment. To push back when the call for a Free Palestine is met with attempts to silence it.”
Macklemore added: “What happened to me is bigger than one artist or one stage. When the billionaire class can decide which voices are allowed on stage and which ones are too dangerous to hear, everyone should be paying attention.”
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