Macklemore has pledged to donate his full $1 million in earnings from Ed Sheeran’s Loop Tour to Palestinian aid organizations after being removed from the remaining dates.
The rapper, 41, whose real name is Benjamin Hammond Haggerty, announced the decision in an Instagram post on Monday, September 14. He named six recipients for the funds: Palestine Children’s Relief Fund, HEAL Palestine, Gaza Soup Kitchen, Medical Aid for Palestinians, UNRWA USA National Committee and Anera.
“With everything that has happened over the last 48 hours, I want to bring the conversation back to where it belongs: to the Palestinian people who are still being killed, still living under military occupation, and still fighting for their freedom,” Macklemore wrote on Instagram.
He continued: “I invite Robert Kraft to match my donation. Whatever we disagree about, perhaps we can agree on this: Palestinian lives are worth protecting.”
The invitation to Kraft carried extra weight because Macklemore had already accused the billionaire owner of Gillette Stadium and the New England Patriots of forcing his removal. In his earlier statement Monday, Macklemore claimed Kraft gave Sheeran an “ultimatum” that led to him being ditched.
Macklemore also shared details of a conversation he had with Sheeran about the fallout. “Ed was in a ****** up position. He knew it. His typical apolitical stance was being challenged in a way it never had been before,” he wrote.
“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. 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. But he couldn’t get past his public facing: I don’t take sides.'”
Sheeran, 34, pushed back with his own statement, insisting the decision came from tour promoters rather than from him personally.
Macklemore’s donation pledge arrived as the tour’s supporting acts began abandoning the production in rapid succession. Irish singer Aaron Rowe was first to exit on Tuesday, September 15. Finneas followed within hours, posting to fans: “Artists must not be silenced when they speak up for the oppressed.”
“I have decided to withdraw from my upcoming tour dates with Ed Sheeran,” Finneas added. “I stand with Palestine and its people.”
The departures kept coming. Irish band Beoga announced they would no longer participate, and Danish pop act Lukas Graham confirmed its exit moments after Finneas’s statement.
The cascading withdrawals traced back to an onstage moment that had already passed into controversy. During a Loop Tour performance, Macklemore called to “free Palestine” while on stage and displayed the Palestinian flag, prompting the move to cut him from remaining dates earlier in the week.
The turmoil has left visible marks on both principals’ social media standings. Sheeran has shed roughly 100,000 Instagram followers since the dispute erupted, while Macklemore has gained nearly a million.
Macklemore closed his Monday statement with a direct appeal to sustain attention beyond the immediate frenzy. “When the news cycle moves on, which it will, don’t move with it. Free Palestine,” he wrote.