Robert Kraft has pledged $2 million to Palestinian relief after Ed Sheeran personally urged the billionaire to commit to the cause.
Kraft, 85, the owner of the New England Patriots and the Kraft Group, shared in a statement Wednesday that Sheeran called him earlier that day to ask for the donation. The pledge came before Macklemore publicly challenged Kraft to match the rapper’s own $1 million contribution.
“Earlier today, before Macklemore challenged me to match his donation, Ed called me and asked me to commit $2 million to match his donation to aid in the region to fight this humanitarian crisis,” the statement reads. “Ed now plans to reach out to other venue owners and our goal is to continue to work together to build bridges.”
Kraft insisted that he’s dedicated his life to trying to help people come together and believes that “all lives are worth protecting.”
“I’d like the people who are speaking in support of the Palestinian people to know that for decades, I have supported efforts that create opportunity for Palestinians and have brought young Palestinians and Israelis together to build businesses, create jobs, and forge relationships,” he concluded.
Macklemore had pledged in an Instagram post Wednesday to donate all the money he’d made on Sheeran’s Loop Tour — $1 million — before he was abruptly fired for his “Free Palestine” speech. He invited Kraft to match his donation.
“Whatever we disagree about, perhaps we can agree on this: Palestinian lives are worth protection,” the “Thrift Shop” rapper wrote. “A Palestinian life is no less valuable than any life on this earth.”
The donation pledge marks the latest turn in a conflict that has engulfed Sheeran’s tour. On Tuesday, the singer posted his own lengthy Instagram statement insisting that removing Macklemore was not his call.
“Macklemore coming off tour was the promoter’s decision, it was not mine,” he wrote. “Macklemore’s contract for the tour was with the promoter, not me. I would never let down the fans who had made plans, nor would I abandon the touring crew and the other support acts and musicians who rely on me for work and to make a living.”
Sheeran noted he’s “appalled by the conflict between Israel and Palestine,” and said he tried to “build a bridge” between the two sides — including talking to Kraft — but was ultimately unsuccessful.
By the time Sheeran spoke out, his tour openers had already walked. Finneas, Lukas Graham, Aaron Rowe and Sheeran’s own backing band Beoga all dropped out of the tour Tuesday in solidarity with Macklemore.
Finneas wrote in an Instagram post, “Artists must not be silenced when they speak up for the oppressed. … I stand with Palestine and its people.”
Danish pop band Lukas Graham wrote, “We should be able to speak out about war, about civilians being killed, about children who deserve to grow up.”
“Money doesn’t give you the right to own the conversation,” they added. “Nobody’s bank balance should decide who gets to speak or which suffering we’re allowed to acknowledge.”
Macklemore had placed responsibility on Sheeran in an earlier Instagram message, writing that “Ed Sheeran and his team have made the decision to remove me from The Loop tour.”
“I consider him a brother,” he wrote in part of Sheeran. “And because of that, we’ve had some difficult conversations this past week. The type of talks rooted in love and respect for one another that still end in a place of fundamental disagreement.”
Macklemore claimed that Sheeran told him that Kraft called him and said he would “not be allowed” to perform at the businessman’s Gillette Stadium later this month. He further claimed that Sheeran told him that the words “Free Palestine” and the image of the Palestinian flag “were hurtful to a lot of people he spoke with.”
“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,” he alleged. “But he couldn’t get past his public facing, ‘I don’t take sides.'”
Sheeran’s Loop Tour is scheduled to continue with upcoming dates across North America.