Tampa concertgoers expected to see Macklemore open for Ed Sheeran at a November show at Raymond James Stadium, the finale to Sheeran’s monthslong U.S. tour.
But this week, following a crush of criticism, Macklemore said Sheeran dropped him as the tour’s opening act after he said “Free Palestine” onstage at a New Jersey concert. Raymond James is one of a handful of venues across the country that reportedly objected to the rapper’s participation, according to The Guardian newspaper.
Messina Touring Group, the promoter of the U.S. leg of Sheeran’s tour, said in a statement to Rolling Stone, “We have been notified by venues on the upcoming U.S. tour dates that they will not allow a concert to take place with Macklemore on the lineup, which would result in the cancellation of the tour and impact hundreds of thousands of fans.”
The change comes months after Raymond James played host to two contested concerts by Ye, the rapper formerly known as Kanye West. Those shows drew tens of thousands of fans despite fierce pushback from residents, Jewish leaders and Florida politicians who decried Ye’s past antisemitic remarks and actions.
A unique clause in Ye’s contract said the Tampa Sports Authority — the public agency that manages Raymond James — could not cancel or interfere with the events “based upon artist identity, prior or past public statements, public perception, political viewpoints, or the anticipated or actual content of the performance,” so long as Ye’s concerts did not run afoul of any laws or venue rules. The authority condemned antisemitism but said canceling the shows could spark First Amendment challenges.
The Tampa Bay Times requested contracts and other records tied to Sheeran’s Nov. 7 concert in Tampa but has not yet received the documents.
Sports Authority spokesperson Bobby Silvest confirmed that Macklemore will not be performing at the upcoming show. “Apart from this lineup change,” he said in a written statement, “the concert will go forward as planned.” Silvest directed other inquiries to Messina Touring Group. Silvest did not immediately respond to a follow-up question from the Times asking if the authority requested Macklemore’s removal.
Earlier this month, Macklemore took the stage at New Jersey’s MetLife Stadium to open for Sheeran.
“One of the reasons why I wanted to come on this tour was because I wanted to stand up on stages and stadiums across America and say two words that are very near and dear to my heart: Free Palestine,” he told a crowd of thousands. He performed “Hind’s Hall,” his 2024 protest song against the war in Gaza.
Formal statements of protest soon swirled.
The Israeli-American Council launched an online petition urging Sheeran to remove Macklemore from the tour because, it said, he used “selective imagery, biased messaging, and disputed claims.” The Anti-Defamation League called his comments “hateful.” The nonprofit StopAntisemitism said he “turned a mainstream event into a political nightmare against the Jewish state.”
Robert Kraft — whose company owns the New England Patriots and Gillette Stadium in Massachusetts, where the pair were slated to perform later this month — allegedly told Sheeran that Macklemore was not allowed to perform, according to a statement the rapper posted to Instagram on Monday.
“Ed also told me that Kraft had rallied some of the other stadium owners and collectively they gave him an ultimatum: if Macklemore stays on the tour, you will not be allowed to play in our venues,” he wrote. Sheeran was in an uncomfortable position, he said, and “couldn’t get past his public facing, ‘I don’t take sides.’”
The Council on American-Islamic Relations condemned the decision to remove Macklemore.
“Privately owned sports stadiums should never threaten to ban musicians because they dare to oppose a genocide, and publicly owned stadiums entities cannot engage in such censorship without violating the First Amendment,” read a statement from National Deputy Director Edward Ahmed Mitchell. Raymond James is a publicly-owned stadium. “We call on Mr. Sheeran and the tour promoters to reverse course.”
Macklemore was slated to perform at eight of Sheeran’s remaining 10 U.S. concerts, including the final show at Raymond James.
