American rapper Macklemore announced his Free Palestine Tour on Sept. 30 via an Instagram post. The concert sold out almost immediately after its announcement.
There are currently three tour stops: Dublin’s 3Arena on Oct. 26, Paris’s AccorArena on Oct. 29 and London’s OVO Arena Wembley on Oct. 30. All proceeds are going to organizations that support Palestine and the Palestinian Movement. There are 12 organizations total: Anera, Palestinian Youth Movement, Heal PalestinePalestine’s Children Relief Fund, UNRWA Middle East Children’s Alliance, Taawon, Institute for Middle East Understanding, Glia, Jewish Voice for Peace, Medical Aid for Palestinians and Gaza Soup Kitchen. The official lineup of the tour has yet to be released, but Macklemore said the other performers will be announced soon.
In December 2023, Macklemore stopped during his sold-out homecoming concert at Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle to read a four-minute pro-Palestinian speech and poem. The rapper pivoted from his music to address the humanitarian crisis and ongoing conflict in Gaza. Wearing what was described as a traditional scarf, he read a poem advocating for the "innocent humans out in Gaza," centering his message around peace and human equality.
“HIND’S HALL” is a protest song Macklemore wrote and released in 2024. It calls for an end to the genocide in Gaza and expresses his support for the pro-Palestine protests on university campuses across the country. The song's name refers to the protesters changing Hamilton Hall at Columbia University’sname to Hind’s Hall for Hind Rajab, a five-year-old Palestinian girl killed by Israeli forces in the Gaza Strip. Macklemore also spoke on his opposition to the music industry for their silence on the issue and former President Joe Biden for his support of the Israeli government and military.
Macklemore was on tour with English singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran for Sheeran’s Loop Tour, but after Macklemore gave a pro-Palestine statement on stage at their New Jersey performance, Macklemore was removed from the remaining tour legs. The removal came from Sheeran’s performance company, Messina Touring Group, after pressure from Robert Kraft, the owner of Gillette Stadium in Massachusetts, and many other pro-Israel advocacy groups and venue owners.
Macklemore and Kraft both released statements on the removal on Sept. 14, with Sheeran releasing a statement the following day. Kraft later released a response on the stadium's Instagram, after Macklemore challengedhim to match his donation to Palestinian organizations. Children's YouTube educator, Ms Rachel, pledged to match Macklemore’s $1 million donation, and invited every “wealthy white celebrity" to do the same.
Since dropping Macklemore from the tour, the remaining openers of Sheeran’s tour, Aaron Rowe, Finneas and Lukas Graham, as well as Irish band Beoga, who joined as a backing band for a segment of the show, have since withdrawn from the tour in solidarity with Macklemore. Several opening acts that performed before his removal, Myles Smith, Amble and BIIRD, have also come out in support of Macklemore and the pro-Palestine movement.
Following the removal, Sheeran found new tour openers. Isaac Sladeformer lead singer of The Fray, is set to perform for four of the tour dates, and Brooks Rosser, former “American Idol” contestant, announced he will also be at one of those shows. There are currently two tour dates with no announced openers.
Since the removal, both sides have faced public backlash. Macklemore has received criticism from pro-Israel groups like StopAntisemitism, an American pro-Israel watchdog and advocacy nonprofit, that posted the rapper was ambushing fans with “anti-Israel propaganda.” Sheeran has also received criticism from fellow artists and protestors, like musician Billy Bragg, who posted, “I’m not impressed by Ed Sheeran’s attempt to deflect the current storm of criticism he is facing by promising to donate $2 million to ‘aid in the region’ of the Middle East” in an Instagram post
Sheeran received outward support from some fellow artists, P!NK Boy George. P!NK posted on Instagrama photo of herself, with a long caption addressing the video she reposted from StopAntisemitism, which was about Macklemore speaking at the concert. Boy George accused Macklemore on X of turning “an ancient conflict into a photo op."
Both Sheeran and Macklemore have received positive and negative feedback from organizations and the public's opinion, but while Sheeran has apologized, saying he handled the situation incorrectly, Macklemore is not backing down and is ready to kick off his “Free Palestine” tour.
