Macklemore Defends 'Free Palestine' Message After Backlash at Ed Sheeran's MetLife Stadium Show

Macklemore delivered a message, one that he claimed he had been focusing on building towards for years now, only to be received with calls for his removal from the tour, simply within the next few days of him delivering it.

Table of Contents

1. What Happened Onstage

2. The Backlash

3. Macklemore's Response

4. The Petition, in Its Own Words

5. Where Ed Sheeran Stands

6. Why "Hind's Hall" Specifically

7. Timeline of Events

8. Conclusion

What Happened Onstage

On the nights of September 4, Friday and September 5, Saturday, Ed Sheeran began his MetLife Stadium shows in East Rutherford, New Jersey and invited Macklemore as the opening act for Sheeran's US "Loop Tour" leg. During his opening set on Friday, Macklemore while wearing a Keffiyeh, addressed the 80,000 people in attendance, "A big part of the reason why I wanted to do this tour in the first place is so I could stand up in stadiums like this and say two words that are very near and dear to my heart: Free Palestine." He continued, "I want those words to be loud and clear, so that people all the way in Gaza to the occupied West Bank know that we have not forgotten about them."

Macklemore further went onto perform "Hind's Hall," his 2024 protest song, while showing background display footage from Gaza and imagery from pro-Palestinian campus encampments played on the stadium's screens. Macklemore further extended his remarks, while raising calls "free Lebanon... free Cuba to the Congo to Sudan to Iran," and referring to US Immigration and Customs Enforcement as a "terrorist organization." The same message was also repeated substantially during Saturday's second show.

The Backlash

The performance received a prompt and firm backlash within the next day. On Sunday, September 6, the Israeli-American Council (IAC), which says it represents more than 150,000 Israeli Americans, launched a petition calling for Sheeran's team to remove Macklemore from the remaining US dates of the tour. They described the set as advancing "a one-sided political agenda", something that should be focused on a political event instead of a musical concert. The advocacy group StopAntisemitism also publicly criticized the performance, and pop star Pink reposted their message along with the word "Awful," adding celebrity visibility to the growing criticism.

Amongst the audience and concertgoers, many fans reported being blindsided. Reporters received statements that claimed many attendees were left unaware of Macklemore being the show's opening act and especially two Israeli attendees felt extremely distressed and upset since they shared personal connections to victims of the October 7 attacks and the Nova music festival. And while the celebrity world and critics jumped to criticize Macklemore, some audience members were also observed cheering and were quick to join in chanting "Free Palestine" alongside Macklemore during the sets.

Macklemore's Response

Macklemore addressed the backlash directly during his second show on Saturday, stating "To all of my Jewish brothers and sisters: criticism of Israel, criticism of apartheid, being against genocide in no way is a criticism of you. My message is for peace; love for all human beings to be treated with dignity, respect, and equality.” The same message was also reinforced through his social media channels on Monday following his performance while clarifying that his performance was a simple call for "Wanting all humans to be treated equal should never be controversial.” Since his addressal to the backlash, He has not indicated any plans to alter his set for the tour's remaining dates, and by all accounts delivered substantially the same message and performance on both nights since the original performance that started the backlash.

The Petition, in Its Own Words

The IAC's petition drew sharp quotation on the core of the dispute by the phrasing, "The issue is not whether Macklemore has the right to hold political views. The question is where the line should be drawn when an opening act uses a global concert platform to advance a one-sided political agenda." The petition has also raised concerns about the content of the imagery used during the performance, arguing that the imagery relief on “selective imagery, biased messaging and disputed claims, presented to a large audience disguised as a fact without adequate context or complexity of the issue, while also questioning whether Sheeran’s team had provided approval of the visual and imagery used during the performance.

Additionally, another petition and social media campaign has also pushed for concert refunds, especially for Jewish Attendees who were unaware of the content and message of Macklemore’s performance. A petition that hasn't received any acknowledgement or approval from either of Sheeran’s team or Macklemore’s since the event.

Where Ed Sheeran Stands

Since the events and reactions that have followed, neither Ed Sheeran nor his management team have issued public statements or responses to the petition or clarifying whether Macklemore's set content, including the Gaza imagery, was approved in advance. On the larger picture, Macklemore being an official opening act alongside Lukas Graham and BIIRD was announced well in advance, and “Hind’s Hall” has also become a regular part of his shoes, indicating that it playing this time at the MetLife Stadium, wasn't a surprise addition to his shoes.

Why "Hind's Hall" Specifically

The song at the center of controversy, "Hind's Hall," was released by Macklemore during a wave of pro-Palestinian demonstrations on US college campuses in 2024. Referencing the Columbia University Student's renaming of the school's Hamilton Hall during a campus occupation, done in honor of Hind Rajab, a five-year-old Palestinian girl killed in Gaza, the song was played to thank the students of the encampment movement for what he described as an act that opened people's hearts to the issue, including his own.

Timeline of Events

Conclusion

If you think of the situation at hand without emphasizing on the names of the celebrities involved, you’d probably realize it's not much different from the debates that have followed every public figure’s comments about Gaza in the past two years. A debate questioning artists' right to voice their beliefs and use their platforms against the audience's expectation and approval of the artists. Macklemore has established a clear stand, he doesn't intend to soften or remove the message from his remaining sets and the Israeli-American Council have also clarified that an American Stadium concert night isn't the right venue for his message. As things stand, neither side appears to be backing down and if Macklemore was to continue opening Ed Sheeran’s US tour, this isn't surely going to be the last flashpoint of this saga.