A ‘blown away’ Macklemore has revealed his upcoming Free Palestine tour sold-out ‘immediately’ – after he announced the concert in response to getting cut from Ed Sheeran’s tour over pro-Palestine comments made on stage.
Controversy erupted earlier this month when opening artist Macklemore made the remarks, leading to his removal from the remainder of Sheeran’s shows.
In response, all of Sheeran’s opening acts – Finneas, Lukas Graham and Aaron Rowe, as well as his backing band Beoga – announced they would be leaving the tour in solidarity with the rapper and Palestine. Sheeran subsequently apologized to his fans over the handling of the row.
Macklemore has since announced he will be embarking on a three-date ‘Free Palestine’ tour with artists who have ‘used their stages to stand in solidarity with the Palestinian people, regardless of the consequences’.
The response was overwhelming.
‘All three shows sold out immediately,’ Macklemore revealed on Instagram on Wednesday. ‘I’m honestly blown away. We put these shows together fast and in community, believing that musicians can stand in solidarity with Palestine, use the stage to raise funds and show what collective action can look like.
Macklemore’s upcoming Free Palestine tour sold-out ‘immediately’ after he announced the concert in response to getting kicked out of Ed Sheeran’s tour for his pro-Palestine comments
Macklemore has three dates that will be benefiting ‘organizations supporting Palestine and the Palestinian movement’
‘When those in power try to silence our calls for liberation, art will always be a form of resistance.
‘Dublin, Paris and London, thank you for showing up the way you did. The response to these shows is another reminder of how many people across the world are standing together for a free Palestine. Lineups coming soon. Can’t wait to be together.’
The ‘Macklemore & Friends: Free Palestine’ tour, a three-date tour occurring in Dublin, Paris, and London, was announced just last week.
The tour will first begin in Dublin on October 26 before it moves to Paris and London, with proceeds ‘benefitting organisations supporting the Palestinian people and movement’.
‘What happened to me is bigger than one artist or one stage. When the billionaire class can decide which voices are allowed on stage and which ones are too dangerous to hear, everyone should be paying attention,’ he wrote in part in his announcement.
‘So, as you all know, my schedule freed up a bit.
Ed has since addressed the backlash around Macklemore’s axing, telling 50,000 fans at his Philadelphia concert earlier this month: ‘The last week of my life has been one of the worst weeks of my life.’
He added though that he was heartened by the fans who had come out to support him, telling them ‘today has been one of the weirdest days of my life. Tonight has been honestly the best show of my life, the best show.
‘I really didn’t know whether this tour would be carrying on. I really didn’t know whether I’d even be getting on stage again, whether I even wanted to be an artist at all. In these situations, you really find out who your friends are, and it’s been a weird week.’
In response to Macklemore’s axing, the remainder of Sheeran’s opening acts dropped out of the tour; pictured 2022
The singer has been accused of ‘bowing to the mob’ after he apologised to fans at the start of the gig, by reading a statement from an autocue.
He backtracked on his previous vow not to bring politics to his show, as he called the situation in Gaza ‘catastrophic and unjustifiable’ and Hamas’s October 7 attacks ‘horrific’.
In a solemn speech at the start of the Philadelphia concert, Ed read off the autocue as he said: ‘I have tried in my career not to be a political commentator of any kind because I want my music and shows to be about unity and not division, about humanity and not politics.
‘But this is a humanitarian issue and I cannot hide how I feel about it anymore. What happened in Israel at Nova music festival on October 7 was horrific and compounded centuries of Jewish pain.
‘What is happening in Gaza is catastrophic and unjustifiable and disproportionate.
‘My heart has been broken by the scale of devastation and loss of civilians’ lives, of children’s lives, and the systemic injustice we’re seeing unfold in the West Bank cannot be overlooked.’
Sheeran has since apologized to his fans over the handling of the row; pictured 2025
Macklemore is the voice behind the 2012 chart-topper Thrift Shop; pictured August
Ed told the audience that he plans to ‘continue my current tour’ despite each of his openers dropping out in solidarity with Macklemore.
He revealed a musician friend who he previously toured with had agreed to back him on songs after Irish folk band Beoga dropped out despite the possibility of facing backlash.
‘I called a friend of mine who is an amazing person and I toured with her all last year and I said: “would you come on stage with me?” And she said “yes”,’ he added.
‘They’ve had three days to learn these songs. And they agreed to come on stage knowing that the world might hate them too for coming on stage with me,’ he said.
Macklemore made the comments at two performances at MetLife Stadium on September 4 and 5, as he introduced his 2024 protest song Hind’s Hall which condemns Israel’s military action in Gaza.
The drama started when Macklemore used his opening set to chant ‘Free Palestine’ and deliver a politically motivated speech.
Macklemore stated that every human being deserves the same freedom, and told the crowd he wanted people in Gaza and the occupied West Bank to know they had not been forgotten.
He then performed his protest song Hind’s Hall while images of the devastation in Gaza were projected on the big screens at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.
Macklemore also faced a boycott petition calling for his removal from Sheeran’s tour for the blunt and direct language he used onstage.
Macklemore was removed from Ed’s tour after US stadium owner Robert Kraft accused him of hate speech and said he was ‘only sharing selective information and ignoring the actions of Hamas’.
Kraft banned him from performing at the Gillette Stadium near Boston, which is owned by his holding company.
