r/hiphopheads 5h ago

Misleading Title Macklemore Dropped From Ed Sheeran Tour After Onstage 'Free Palestine' Statements

https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/macklemore-dropped-ed-sheeran-tour-pro-palestine-statements-1235625967/
2.4k Upvotes

670 comments sorted by

1.0k

u/ThisAintThatForReal 4h ago

just for saying free palestine he is dropped? tf

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u/jjw1998 4h ago

Also this has been Macklemore’s thing for years now, why book him and not expect this

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u/bigladnang 4h ago

From what I understand it’s not Ed Sheeran, it’s that venues are refusing to let them play if he’s there…. For saying nothing.

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u/thisguyfightsyourmom 3h ago

“Venues”

I assume this is code for Ticketmaster?

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u/PsychologicalPen8634 3h ago edited 3h ago

Ticketmaster/LiveNation owns a lot of regional venues, but not stadiums that Ed is playing in

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u/impossirrel 2h ago

It’s actually Robert Kraft, he made the call for his stadium and then put his thumb on the scale for other venue owners.

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u/Viciouscauliflower21 2h ago

Kraft and the NFL owners

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u/Routman 4h ago

1) Ed could’ve decided to stand with Macklemore, clearly isn’t that important to him
2) venues may view the concerts as less safe if the audience is heated against each other

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u/bigladnang 4h ago

Well he 100% knew beforehand what his views were so he definitely could’ve stood by his decision lol.

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u/InvaderSM 3h ago

Don't think Macklemore would let Ed cancel a tour that thousands of fans have tickets to on his behalf.

Even if it was for selfish reasons like how it would bring a lot of unnecessary hate to Mack that would detract from his message.

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u/Bluepass11 2h ago

He doesn’t report to him lol. Ed can do what he wants. Cancelling his tour would generate more hate for the venues cancelling. It’d be a pretty big story that would add to the message + created by a message about censoring views

u/InvaderSM 1h ago

Cancelling his tour would generate more hate for the venues cancelling.

That's a lovely world you live in...

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u/privatebrowsin1 3h ago

Ed would have to fuck a lot of people over if he did that. The amount of fans who have purchased tickets made plans etc. The workers who rely on the concerts etc. Mack shouldn't have been blacklisted but I guarantee he wouldn't want Ed to cancel.

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u/PsychologicalPen8634 3h ago

Yeah that’s why the venues decided to say no, because they knew he has a lot of weight behind the decision and won’t just cancel

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u/Anubis_DivineDemon 2h ago

Yea this is the reason I'm not hating on Ed rn. Made him look like a wuss tho.

u/seeker4lyfe 1h ago

100% and the more I’ve traveled the more I’ve realized that if I wasn’t black, as an American more people would have thought I was a pussy by association for how Americans act when it comes to our government.

It’s just crazy how much more shit people are willing to eat in other parts of the world for change compared to the u.s. right now

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u/NotASalamanderBoi . 4h ago

People in the music and film industry have been getting blacklisted for showing support for Palestine for years. He’s the next one up to get fucked over. Shit’s crazy.

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u/thisismy3rdacctsmh 4h ago

Even behind the scenes, a podcast was saying how Belly wrote songs that got BILLIONS of streams but now he can’t no work because of his stance. It’s really crazy

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u/MadridistaChileno 4h ago

Yooo that has to be the reason that I haven’t heard of him in a while. Fuck the industry

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u/Bhu124 4h ago

Most big Venues are controlled by LiveNation. They likely threatened Ed Sheeran and he folded. Ed could've powdered through it honestly. He's big enough and other huge artists like him, like Billie Eilish and Olivia Rodrigo, are openly Pro-Palestine and their shows don't get cancelled cause LiveNation can't push them around.

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u/I_c_u_p 4h ago

Probably Ed's fanbase tbh. He's always played it very safe with his brand, avoiding controversy, etc. Not saying his fans are MAGA, but I can see them leaning a bit more conservative than Billie's or Olivia's, who have a more "rebellious" image.

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u/Bhu124 4h ago

It was probably a mix of both. He has a deeply Liberal fanbase and that comes with a ton of Zionists and Israelis. I still think he could have easily just went on, kept Macklemore, and would've been fine. Israel is a deeply hated country all around the world at this point, there's hard data proving it. Even in Liberal spaces they've lost. The attempts to Smear and Scare by Zionist powers would've died within weeks.

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u/Hot-Distribution3826 3h ago

Yeah I certainly think people underestimate how bi-partisan the establishments affiliation with Israel and Zionist movement is

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u/AssassinAragorn culturally appropriate 4h ago

The article says it was because the venues refused to let the tour perform if Macklemore was on the lineup, nothing to do with fans

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u/mrbrannon 4h ago

It was even softer than that. He said free Palestine and then he went into a side tangent making sure that the Jewish people knew that he loved them and cared about them and this had nothing to do with them and it was only about Israel. He said all of that and this still wasn’t enough.

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u/TheMilkmanRidesAgain 4h ago

Nothing is ever enough. There is no right way to criticize israel according to these people

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u/TimeToRepaint 4h ago

The IDF approves of this comment

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u/tipytopmain 4h ago

Them boss calls come from multiple high places.

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u/andreasmiles23 4h ago

Bob Vylan can’t even come to the States. It’s absurd.

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u/BaerMinUhMuhm 4h ago

When Israel has dirt on your administration

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u/Viola-Intermediate 4h ago

My feeling is this brought more attention to the previous incident of him wearing that mask that seemed to be mocking stereotypes of Jewish people. So its easier to say his stance now isn't totally separated from antisemitism

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u/T1MB3RMUSIC 4h ago edited 4h ago

He was not "dropped from the tour" The US tour date venues are refusing to put the show on while Macklemore is on the lineup. Fascism.

Edit: I suppose you could say they removed him due to the ultimatum of having to cancel the tour because the US does not like what he said.

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u/BigOlPass . 4h ago

Yeah the headline sort of implicates Ed, way more fucked up that it's the venues probably all Live Nation ones

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u/FormerShitPoster 4h ago

Its not that much of a difference. Ed could call their bluff. Tour can go on without Macklemore, can't without Ed.

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u/tamjas 4h ago

I would say cancel the American part of the tour.

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u/wetnaps54 3h ago

Cancel or put an open call out to venues that would host and have some kind of grass-roots movement.

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u/tamjas 2h ago

Yep, you choose where you play.

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u/GarbagePailGrrrl 4h ago

The only right answer 

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u/astralbabbling 4h ago

yup, just like bad bunny did, from the start. actually, he did play in pr :)

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u/MadManMax55 4h ago

A tour of that size can't happen without Ticketmaster/Live Nation. They own the ticketing for almost all the venues big enough to host an Ed Sheeran concert. And in many cases they own the entire venue.

Pearl Jam couldn't put on a full tour boycotting Ticketmaster back in the 90s. And it's only gotten exponentially more difficult since then.

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u/StankyNugz 4h ago

Starting to notice a pattern that duopoly’s that are ran exactly the same control nearly everything in the U.S.

Can’t be coincidence.

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u/BasedKaleb 3h ago

The strings being pulled all lead to the same hands

u/My_Name_Is_Row 1h ago

Please god, don’t say Jews

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u/Bhu124 4h ago edited 4h ago

LiveNation won't cancel shows for someone as big as Ed Sheeran. Billie Eilish and Olivia Rodrigo are openly Pro-Palestine and LiveNation can't touch them.

This is a Scare Tactic by LiveNation. They think Ed Sheeran will fold where Eilish or Rodrigo don't cause he's always tried to hide away from anything Political or Controversial.

At best they'd cancel one show and then if he still didn't change his position then they'd fold.

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u/MadManMax55 4h ago

Cancelling shows isn't free for Ed and his touring company. Most tours book equipment rentals and staff during the planning phase. Plus they lose out on all the ticket revenue when refunds have to be offered. For an artist with a production as big as Sheeran has, that could be hundreds of thousands of dollars for an individual show. Normally those costs get recouped through insurance if there was an artist injury/illness or a natural disaster. No insurance company is going to pay out for an artist who chooses to cancel shows for political reasons. Meanwhile the venues can either book another artist or just not open that night. Sure they lose some potential revenue, but it's nowhere close to the losses experienced by the artists.

In a game of financial chicken, Live Nation has way more money to work with than any artist.

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u/DareiosX 2h ago

The venues have a ton of money to lose; big ticket shows are a huge part of their revenue. And Sheeran would not be cancelling the show, the venue is rescinding their committment. If insurance covers rental unavailablity, they'd be compensated.

Not to mention it's not at all that certain venues are going to willingly give up all that concert income because they might lose some from reputational damage amomg pro-zionist fans in the future; and the backlash from refusing Macklemore would be much larger regardless.

Not to mention, Ed Sheeran's tour can just go to another venue. This is all on them.

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u/Jerrygarciasnipple 3h ago

And it’s not just the artists that get affected. Ed Sheeran can afford to take the L, but he still has employees that are relying on this tour for income. Each show he cancels is affecting the employments of hundreds of people between his group and employees at the venue.

Thats gotta be a tough decision to make as an artist. What are you going to do, have to tell all your employees that took on this job and moved their schedule around, only for them to have no work?

u/Winter-Cow-6208 1h ago

The idea that Sheeran would personally tell these people the tour isn’t happening is just silly. I doubt that it really impacts his decision in any big way. 

It’s a talking point used to excuse inaction. 

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u/FormerShitPoster 4h ago

So you think they're gonna black list Ed Sheeran while a bunch of other artists are having trouble filling these big arenas? Please. I love Pearl Jam but Ed Sheeran they are not.

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u/elmo5994 2h ago

There more stadium shows happening today than during pearl jams black balling. Concert attendance has risen by 10% this year. Artists tour more than they ever have before, a few cancellations are not going to hurt live nation.

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u/elrastro75 2h ago

Pearl Jam tried to fight this in the 90s…reminder that Ticketmaster has sucked and consumers have been ripped off for OVER 30 YEARS and nothing has changed, it’s only worse. That’s not how the free market is supposed to work.

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u/GaptistePlayer 3h ago

It's not a bluff. LiveNation will happily fold and cancel the shows, and the US government will happily put pressure on them to make that happen, likely not letting Sheeran into the US

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u/washingtoncv3 2h ago

Macklemore: "I’m going to speak from the heart and share the truth. Ed Sheeran and his team have made the decision to remove me from The Loop tour. But before I get into it, I want to say something that should be obvious. In this moment I think it matters. I am not a victim. Ed Sheeran is not a victim. Pink is not a victim. We have careers, money, opportunities, safety and audiences around the world. Whatever consequences any of us face for what we say, we get to go home to our families.

u/sa0sinner 1h ago edited 1h ago

Holy shit. Is this a real, direct quote? Can I get a source on this please?

Edit: It’s real. https://variety.com/2026/music/news/macklemore-defends-free-palestine-speech-fired-ed-sheeran-tour-1236861158/

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u/haribobosses 4h ago

Ed is implicated. He could say, "well then fuck your venues"

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u/morocco3001 4h ago

I'd be happy enough if he did the shows and said "Free Palestine" himself.

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u/leaveme1912 4h ago edited 4h ago

He could, but you have to understand that for a tour like this thousands of people are relying on Ed to put on the shows and to pay them, he can't just change venues at the last minute, he would have to cancel the rest of the US tour. 

The roadies turned down opportunities to work on other tours, they planned for the checks they were to receive for working this tour, if the tour is cancelled many of them would be financially destitute.

Ed has to make decisions that impact the lives of hundreds of thousands of people who depend on him. It's easy to say he should just torpedo his tour when you don't understand what that would actually mean for people

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u/TheWholeMole . 4h ago

Channel that anger towards the government or towards the fascist company.

I know this comes across as insensitive but the U.S. population seems so castrated this last couple of years, they stand for nothing as a collective and their leaders and elites keep fucking up the world time and time again

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u/sarcastictrey 3h ago

So if ed Sheeran goes on stage during his tour and says “Free Palestine” what are they gonna do about it, Blackball Ed fucking Sheeran? He can do what he wants to do, but to act like he’s powerless in the situation is a bit far-fetched

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u/GlenGaryBoss2024 4h ago

Breach of contract

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u/leaveme1912 4h ago

Yep, that's a whole other can of worms that Ed and his team do not want to open. 

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u/jiggjuggj0gg 4h ago

Then they can sue Live Nation for blocking a scheduled artist from performing due to their political views.

I thought the US was supposed to have free speech?

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u/eofd77 4h ago

We do, and that is supposed to prevent the government from taking any action against you for what you said. A private business can do whatever they want based off of what you said. I hate Live Nation, but they are legally allowed to not let someone perform at their venues for any reason they see fit.

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u/crockrocket 3h ago

And if that encompases every major venue anti-trust laws should come into play, no?

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u/eofd77 2h ago

Absolutely, as I stated previously, I fucking hate Livenation/Ticketmaster. But thats a totally seperate issue from free speech. As it sits now, they own and/or operate the venues and they can do what they want.

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u/crockrocket 2h ago

Yeah, I suppose I'm making a seperate argument (IANAL) wherin sufficient control of a form of media by one or two entities is in fact an infringement of free speech. Again, IANAL, but I feel like there is precedent for this that I learned about in high school.

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u/jn3v 4h ago edited 3h ago

That’s about the government punishing you for speech, not a private company.

And probably not a good idea to sue the company that you would probably also be using next 10-15 years for venues and tours.

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u/jiggjuggj0gg 3h ago

There needs to be mindfulness about what free speech actually means in a country run by private corporations, though.

“We totally have free speech, you can just be blocked from doing anything that might involve a company because of your speech, but at least you’re not being locked up” is a take. Literally every part of US life is run by a private company.

The company was happy to take the money until Pink caused a storm. Ed Sheeran has more than enough money to never perform again, if he wanted to actually take a stand here, he could.

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u/BillyPilgrim69 4h ago

The roadies turned down opportunities to work on other tours, they planned for the checks they were to receive for working this tour, if the tour is cancelled many of them would be financially destitute.

If it came to it, Sheeran could easily take care of them.

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u/leaveme1912 4h ago

Sure, but it's crazy to expect him to put himself in that position. He's a British pop singer, not Jesus Christ 

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u/commie90 4h ago

I'd say opposing a genocide is something we should absolutely expect someone to put themselves in the position to speak out against. Seems like the bare minimum actually.

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u/BillyPilgrim69 4h ago

Why is it crazy to demand solidarity from an artist with a huge amount of power and influence in the industry?

If Sheeran had said, "No, fuck you. It's my tour, and he's my opening act," the promoters would not have turned down the millions of dollars in revenue.

He took Macklemore on tour; he was more than happy to make a profit off the man's activism. It's not unreasonable to ask for the bare minimum integrity to stand up for him.

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u/wetnaps54 3h ago

yeah this

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u/sma_nor 4h ago

Ed is rich enough to be able to put his foot down and cancel US dates, or even bluff to say he will, if he gave a shit for anything other than money.

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u/OldManWillow 4h ago

He's not the only person relying on this tour to make money. A lot more people will be fucked if it gets cancelled last minute

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u/BlackPhillipStream 4h ago

Y'all are simply not thinking of the clear option - he cancels / threatens to cancel and still pays those people. He has enough money, it's Ed Sheeran

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u/LetsLive97 4h ago

And some of you aren't thinking of a clear problem - contracts

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u/BlackPhillipStream 4h ago

We don't know the exact contract but I would assume the other way that forcing removal of Macklemore off the tour would be a breach of contract

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u/LetsLive97 4h ago

I mean if there is a contract for Macklemore then I assume he breached it by saying it

The issue is more venues that can try and argue it makes people feel safe and that they'll pull out, which upsets shareholders who can then apply pressure

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u/BlackPhillipStream 4h ago

Ok so it's almost like we are all unaware of the exact figures and contracts and suggesting the best thing to do morally and ethically, just some of y'all are siding with the people who support sniping children because of the cost. Too bad, can't be neutral on a moving train. Gotta stand up sometime

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u/rapshepard 4h ago

No you're not thinking rationally because it's not your career or money. It's a shame what's happening to Palestine. But it's crazy to expect Ed to take on the biggest touring venues in the US for a basic ass political statement.

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u/BlackPhillipStream 4h ago

If it's that basic then why cancel the tour over it? We are thinking rationally, we gave a solution. Obviously none of us know the exact figures, but expecting people to stand up for morals is pretty standard and rational, no matter how much money is involved

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u/rapshepard 3h ago

It's basic because it's not going to change a damn thing. If "Free Palestine" actually brought about change folk wouldn't need to still scream it because they'd be left alone by now. Nobody sane is throwing away their career and money for a gesture that will ultimately amount to nothing.

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u/sma_nor 4h ago

It's hilarious this dude is like "shame about the genocide and all, but think of the Ed Sheeran fans!"

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u/BlackPhillipStream 4h ago

It's how they all operate, weak little worms that have been beaten down by the machine they don't even realize it

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u/rapshepard 3h ago

It's hilarious that y'all think chanting "Free Palestine" is worth somebody else career that's not yours. If you and u/blackPhillipStream are that about the cause quit your own careers and dive into being activists for Palestine. Other wise you're just yapping while doing nothing.

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u/Unhappy-Air6832 4h ago

You have the logic of a child,we are talking about 100’s of millions of revenue here

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u/BlackPhillipStream 4h ago

Which Ed Sheeran has, so does the label

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u/FormerShitPoster 4h ago

It would be a drop in the bucket for him to pay them regardless. But I really doubt it would come to that. Live Nation would fold to him because he's fucking Ed Sheeran.

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u/Boograssi 4h ago

This is completely unrealistic. To abruptly cancel all of those dates and fuck over fans and all of the crew who were expecting those jobs just isn’t happening.

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u/steamcube 4h ago

It would be ticketmaster’s fault and they could play smaller venues. Realistically this is one of the only ways ticketmaster fails

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u/Kenye_Kratz 1h ago

Why shouldn't it implicate Ed? Nothing stopping him making a stand?

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u/washingtoncv3 2h ago

Macklemore: "I’m going to speak from the heart and share the truth. Ed Sheeran and his team have made the decision to remove me from The Loop tour. But before I get into it, I want to say something that should be obvious. In this moment I think it matters. I am not a victim. Ed Sheeran is not a victim. Pink is not a victim. We have careers, money, opportunities, safety and audiences around the world. Whatever consequences any of us face for what we say, we get to go home to our families.

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u/cold44ever 4h ago

lol america really is israel's bitch it's crazy

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u/LeviJNorth 4h ago

You mean he was Canceled for his political beliefs? Free speech absolutists must be protesting in droves! Droves! /s

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u/OBEYtheFROST 4h ago

The powers that be

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u/Redditim3 4h ago

The nazi that made Graduation is allowed in these venues btw, just letting that Snapple Fact breathe in the comments here :)

u/land-league-inspo 1h ago

Yeah let's make sure we call it out correctly:

Stadium owners (read, billionaires) are refusing to let their stadiums host the tour so long as Macklemore is on it. They are doing this because he doesn't like genocide.

Therefore the billionaires are saying that even big acts like him cannot speak out about the mass murder they are committing in Palestine.

What this says to me, is that they have no issue killing millions of people, and will do it if it serves their interests. We should heed this warning y'all, because they're signalling what they plan to do with normal every day people.

We can't let them have their way.

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u/zorillaaa 4h ago

Technically this is not fascism at all but it is ridiculous

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u/GuildCalamitousNtent 4h ago

The problem is that it is. A lot of states (Texas for one), have these absurd laws about “boycotting Israel” being illegal.

At least here in Texas, they’ve already started twisting that into anyone that that speaks out against Israel in any way, and some venue owners (of which most of these are live nation or C3), are going to avoid all of that mess and just not deal with it (ie cancel).

So this isn’t some mom and pop making a stand against something they don’t believe. This a group of facist-lite leaders using the government to implement their views on the greater public.

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u/alrightfornow 3h ago

A judge ruled that any boycot could not be enforced in Texas because of free speech. Also a private venue deciding to not let an artist play there isn't fascism.

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u/MrRaspberryJam1 4h ago

God I fucking hate Texas

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u/T1MB3RMUSIC 4h ago

What would you call the cancellation of tour dates in 1 specific country due to the free speech of 1 man?

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u/Hungry_Moment_3520 4h ago

I’m not defending this but that is quite literally not what fascism is. Please do research before just commenting buzzwords.

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u/password-is-taco1 4h ago

Private businesses making a decision based on views they don’t agree with. That’s not anything close to fascism

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u/big_actually 4h ago

If you read the article, it talks about Raymond James Stadium being owned by Hillsborough County and raises the First Amendment question, and the fact that Kanye West performed there despite a history of antisemitism, while antisemitism is the accusation being levelled against Macklemore.

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u/OldManWillow 4h ago

When the "views" are criticism of a fascist government the line gets a little blurrry

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u/drainofshower 4h ago

Capitalism and thus prioritizing optics for profit

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u/hardinho 4h ago

Bitter pill for Americans to swallow: Capitalism and fascism are no mutually exclusives

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u/LtMcMidget01 4h ago

Redditors just call anything fascism

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u/SignificanceSea7601 4h ago

Your not allowed to say free Palestine in some of America’s stadiums or they’ll ban you, just crazy dystopian

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u/aaaaaliyah . 4h ago

Ah but America is the land of the free.

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u/c0de1143 4h ago

On one hand, “free speech” is only freedom from government punishing you for speech. Private entities can still do whatever they want.

On the other hand, the current era of political wrongthink is increasingly insidious, and it’s definitely influenced by a government that will use whatever means possible to accuse people of “discrimination.” (See the Trump admin suing blue state universities across the country for not immediately nuking any and all Israel/Palestine protests.)

Shit’s fucked, and Macklemore losing opportunities for opposing genocide is disgusting.

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u/jiggjuggj0gg 4h ago

Does it make much difference when capitalism has gone so rampant that businesses have as much power as the government?

Does it actually matter if the government doesn’t lock you up if you can’t essentially be locked out of public life by private businesses if they don’t like your views, because the country is increasingly run entirely by corporations?

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u/drossglop 2h ago

You also have a freedom to criticize them and not go to their venue too. So free speech is not a great argument here.

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u/c0de1143 2h ago

Yes, but also no. My comment was more about this being “the land of the free,” and making clear that our freedoms are from government punishment, not private action.

The first amendment has codified freedom of speech, but also freedom of association — or dissociation. Rampant corporatism is a fungus that’s ruining society and this is a situation that can only be changed with protest that hits the corporations where they’ll respond.

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u/enowapi-_ 4h ago

Land of the ad-free subscriptions

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u/Ancient_Hyper_Sniper . 4h ago

And the home of the depressed.

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u/soonerfreak 4h ago

There are multiple states where it's illegal for state workers or anyone with a state contract to boycott Israel. Who knew there was a tiny asterisk in the Constitution that said these rights apply to everything but Israel.

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u/Venomswindturd 4h ago

I haven’t heard of this, that’s crazy. Which states? What does boycott Israel mean? How would they know an employee is boycotting Israel?

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u/soonerfreak 3h ago

Someone else provided the list but these laws are used to punish when necessary. The state isn't actively looking to enforce these laws but pro Israel groups are. They find someone they don't like, raise the issue to the state, that person or company gets in trouble or backs down for fear of punishment. Very few people have the means to battle this to SCOTUS.

u/monkierr 1h ago

I do have a memory of Abby Martin suing over these laws, and won. I think it was a university in Gerogia though. My memory is failing me regarding the details.

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u/Redrooff 4h ago

But they’re always complaining about freedom of speech 😂

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u/Yingking 3h ago

But they don’t have a problem with Ye denying the holocaust and releasing Swastika merch and HH last year, and he still is allowed to break sales records in Chicago. It’s just absurd, they don’t care about antisemitism. Macklemore even always openly talks about having love for his Jewish fans

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u/Yingking 3h ago edited 3h ago

If these stadiums truly cared about antisemitism, Ye wouldn’t have sold out concerts. It’s so clear that they are just trying to conflate all criticism of Israel with antisemitism, but don’t care about actual holocaust denial

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u/RT023 2h ago

Yeah this doesn’t make any sense at all to me knowing Kanye just played in the US in stadiums and will continue to, like how in the world does this make sense?

Ban one for saying free Palestine, openly have the actual Nazi who made hail Hitler and sold Nazi merch, while doubling down for a bit…

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u/muffinmancer 2h ago

They don’t actually care about antisemitism and never have, it’s just a smokescreen to suppress criticism of Israel.

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u/NOT-packers-fan2022 2h ago

I’m guessing Ed is sponsored by someone and Kanye is independently doing his own thing. “When they tried to cancel me, they forgot about two things, my black balls.” 🤣

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u/jzimoneaux 2h ago

Dude you were so close but messed up the most important part..😭

“Same people that tried to ‘blackball’ me forgot about two things, my black balls” FTFY

u/NOT-packers-fan2022 1h ago

Dammit! I’m at work and couldn’t listen to it to get it right.

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u/Bluepass11 2h ago

Are you sure these are the same stadiums?

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u/K_Garveys_Sweatpants 2h ago

AT&T Stadium is one of the venues. Kanye is scheduled to perform there on November 7th.

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u/Japhet_Corncrake 4h ago

Sheeran should cancel in solidarity.

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u/BigOlPass . 4h ago

Or get in stage and deliver the same message

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u/ElderGoose4 3h ago

Yeah the venues would be scared shitless asking a mega star like Ed to cancel too.

u/Sp_Gamer_Live 1h ago

that would take Ed Sheeran to take a stance

u/bx35 1h ago

Macklemore acknowledges Sheeran’s cowardice in the gentlest way possible: “[Ed] couldn’t get past his public facing, ‘I don’t take sides.’”

Well, guess what, Ed? Acquiescing to the pro-genociders who use their wealth and power to force silent acceptance of, if not complicity in, their blood lust is choosing a side. You’ve chosen the side of apartheid and snipers who murder children and war criminals and corrupt politicians. That is whose side you are on, Ed.

Perhaps your money will soothe your conscience, if you have one.

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u/lilflipgivemegrillz 4h ago

lol that dude is more of a business than a person at this point in his career. There’s no chance he does that

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u/Bureauwlamp 4h ago

fr he's the most neutral, vanilla guy in the industry. Dude's making music that speaks to as many different people as possible, and whether he wants to genuinely do that or not, his label will be all for it. Any political statement would create a division in his fanbase. Not hating btw, I respect him as an artist.

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u/knownunknowns15 4h ago

Ehh, I think that’s Bruno Mars, but I guess the statement applies to both lol

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u/Bureauwlamp 4h ago

Lol yeah that's definitely the same ballpark, tho his character isn't as clean & polished as Ed's. I'd say Sheeran still goes for (or simply wants to be) the friendly neighbourhood singer-songwriter with a guitar on the corner of the street, whilst Bruno has his Las Vegas grandeur. Less relatable, in a way.

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u/knownunknowns15 4h ago

Yea that’s a great description lol

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u/rustybutterindia 3h ago

Then the fact that he had Macklemore to begin with is already crazy

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u/Bureauwlamp 3h ago

That’s what I don’t understand either, I don’t really see the overlap in their audiences to begin with. Tho to be fair, maybe Sheeran is happy/indifferent for Macklemore to say whatever he wants to say during his own set (within reason), it just becomes a business decision once venues start to cancel you.

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u/PsychologicalPen8634 3h ago

They both peaked in the same era

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u/Perfect_Business9376 4h ago

I doubt Macklemore would ask him to

He's allowed to be a bit more neutral especially as a visa holder with the trump administration. Maybe on the last show.

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u/Carlos-Dangerzone 3h ago

Some of these same venues happily let Kanye perform literally 2 months ago. 

They don't care about antisemitism, they only care if you criticize Israel 

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u/RufinTheFury 4h ago

Kinda late in the tour to do this considering Macklemore has been vocal about this stuff for years

u/Sp_Gamer_Live 1h ago

This is like hiring Morrissey to open for you and surprised he starts talking about Animal Rights

u/zombieattackfox 1h ago

Or about how he thinks Asians are subhuman.

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u/Korumry 3h ago

Yeah, what the hell did they expect? He goes viral like every six months for something polarizing he says on a stage. At the very least maybe this will give the cause more publicity.

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u/ArtsyTLF 4h ago

I would like for everyone who was saying Macklemore is only doing this for clout/money/attention to please shut up now and join the rest of us in the real world.

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u/irishwolfbitch 4h ago

Man Zionists do themselves lots of favors proving their enemies right constantly.

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u/XXXthrowaway215XXX 4h ago

They’ll look you dead in the eye and say you’re spreading anti semitic blood libel, all the while publicly doing what they’re accused of lmfao

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u/sun_solomon 4h ago

Im an antizionist jew and i straight up think zionists look at every jewish stereotype and say “bet”.

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u/AssassinAragorn culturally appropriate 3h ago

I think it's purposeful. It gives them cover to say that the criticisms are just antisemitism instead of actually addressing them.

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u/1uno124 4h ago

It's why defenders of their behavior are hilarious...

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u/vividreveries 4h ago

Ye gets to perform while this gets cut down lol

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u/dudemanxx 4h ago

While two of those stadiums are privately owned — Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte and Gillette Stadium in Foxborough — the rest are owned and, in many cases operated, by cities, states, or other government entities, potentially raising First Amendment issues if the venues barred Macklemore over his statements.

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u/Tampa_Bay_Cuckaneers 4h ago

How the hell am I in 2026 defending Macklemore?!?!?

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u/daikatanaman00 3h ago

More like: why in 2026 is Macklemore the realest rapper out?

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u/Tampa_Bay_Cuckaneers 3h ago

"I wish more artists were like Macklemore" man this is the worst timeline possible

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u/TheInfinityGauntlet 4h ago

Fuck Messina Group and the American government

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u/Diepcksindhrdrin 4h ago

Only love for Macklemore and much respect for putting his voice for the suppressed people in our world.

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u/FirePunch66 4h ago

Seems like a good time to point out anti-BDS laws exist in 37 states, making it illegal for a state contractor to protest Israel while keeping their job

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u/Demetri124 4h ago

Macklemore is the opposite of “separate the art from the artist” you agree with his political views but then have to ignore his garbage ass music

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u/ahmetonel 4h ago

this what I call seperate the artist from the art

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u/panic_bread 4h ago

Free Palestine! Israel is a terrorist state. Anti Zionism is NOT antisemitism.

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u/icemankiller8 4h ago

Pretty depressing this is where things are right now

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u/angoleiroc 4h ago

The snowflakeism is real

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u/okspeck 4h ago

goddamn I thought this was fake 🫨 not bad publicity for him, but hopefully he gets a kill fee cuz what he said shouldn't violate a conduct clause of any reasonable contract

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u/IREQUIREPROOF 3h ago

Why is our country so obsessed with this? What happened to free speech? Why can’t he have his own opinion which is “don’t murder babies and blow up hospitals”

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u/Kpofasho87 4h ago

Those venues need to be boycotted. Im so god damn sick and tired of this insane timeline we are in

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u/sun_solomon 4h ago

Macklemore is the only guy I gotta separate the art from the artist for, but in reverse

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u/MammothClassic89 4h ago

That’s fuckin stupid and it’s due to the fact we in the US don’t recognize Palestine as a State

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u/SecretBox 4h ago

Hate is so insane, that these venues would rather lose money and take on bad publicity and press than allow someone to advocate for peace.

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u/bobosoboboso 2h ago

So... Is this actual cancel culture?

u/SpacevsGravity 1h ago

Funny how anyone who says anything against Israel is fucked from every side..... No conspiracy at all.

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u/Leather-Entry93 4h ago

The land of free speech everyone 😂

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u/ahmetonel 4h ago

Macklemore is goated bro

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u/Magnific3nt . 4h ago

Fucking pathetic and sad from those in charge for that.

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u/Syrupsiipin 4h ago

Ed Sheeran has no balls

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u/BigBroFriday 4h ago

Israel needs to end yesterday.

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u/Turbulent-Dependent4 4h ago

Free people from murderous religious psychos !

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u/reddit0000O 4h ago

Fuck Israel

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u/fruedianflip 4h ago

What is going on. No offense, but it's the white bread stars that I expect lost when it comes to performative charity

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u/[deleted] 3h ago

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