Jethro Sheeran called his famous cousin Ed a “coward” and a “bad human” during a blistering interview with Piers Morgan.
The musician, who is Ed Sheeran’s cousin, sat down with Morgan, 60, for a conversation that the broadcaster later described on X as “one of the weirdest interviews of my career….” Jethro, 44, used the platform to air grievances he said had been building for nearly a decade, targeting the pop star amid the ongoing fallout from Macklemore’s removal from the Loop Tour.
Jethro told Morgan he had “witnessed him being a coward for almost 10 years and lying,” He added: “People think I’m jealous of him… but jealous of what? His looks, his guitar?”
The interview also saw Jethro break into a rap song, which he later promoted on social media as something that was “finally” exposing Ed Sheeran for who he truly is. Before the broadcast, Jethro had already unloaded on Facebook, writing: “Finally it’s all coming out! I’m ashamed of my cousin Ed and what he’s done.”
He continued in that post: “Finally the world and all his fans see through him. He’s not a good person, I don’t like his music so I can’t say he’s even a good artist.”
Jethro went further in his Facebook attack, directly addressing the Macklemore controversy. “Ed Sheeran! He is shady and he’s dropped Macklemore himself I believe 100 per cent he’s a coward,” he wrote. “In my opinion he’s a bad human. Just my opinion from my experiences.”
The Loop Tour has been rocked by controversy since September 4, when Macklemore was fired after making pro-Palestinian comments on stage during a performance. Ed Sheeran has maintained that his tour promoter, not he, insisted on the rapper’s removal. That distinction has done little to quell the backlash, which has included other supporting acts departing the tour in solidarity with Macklemore and Ed shedding nearly 500,000 Instagram followers.
The strain on the British singer became visible during his September 19 show in Philadelphia. Addressing the crowd through tears, he said: “In these situations you really find out who your friends are. It’s been a weird week.”
He continued: “It happened very quickly. At the same time, I had so many people telling me to cancel this tour and so many people I’ve known for years and years and years they’re kind of backing away.”
Ed found some solace in the fans who remained. “I look at the end of the week and I see 50,000 people who haven’t abandoned me,” he told the Philadelphia audience. “People will say what they want, but I am doing this for you. I love you. I love this.”
Jethro’s public denunciation marks an extraordinary family rupture played out across television and social media, with the cousin explicitly rejecting any envy of Ed’s success while simultaneously dismantling his character on multiple platforms.
Ed’s representatives were approached for comment.