Sigh.
You could almost see it coming.
After NFL owner Robert Kraft told musician Ed Sheeran he didn't want Macklemore to appear at Gillette Stadium because of antisemitism, and he was dropped from other venues, the leftist reaction kicked in to support Macklemore.
Other acts dropped out of the tour in protest of Macklemore being dropped. Sheeran's own band dropped out.
Singer-songwriter Aaron Rowe and Danish band Lukas Graham, who had been expected to support Sheeran on upcoming North American dates, both withdrew from the tour. Finneas, who was scheduled to join Sheeran for a run of South American dates later this year, also pulled out, while Irish folk group Beoga — longtime collaborators who had been performing as part of Sheeran’s live show — exited as well. All four cited Macklemore’s removal in announcing their decisions.
So it was clear the pressure was building on Sheeran.
Looks like he caved and has now apologized for disappointing fans, although he's continuing his tour.
"I’m not surprised that this week’s criticism was about something much more important," Sheeran said upon opening his show at Lincoln Financial Field. "I’ve had to take and make difficult decisions, and I am making mistakes. I’m so, so sorry. I don’t want to disappoint fans.
Ed Sheeran addresses the controversy surrounding Macklemore’s removal from his tour and says, “What is happening in Gaza is catastrophic and unjustifiable.”
— Variety (@Variety) September 20, 2026
“Before I play some songs tonight, I hope it’s okay if I say a few words about this last week,” Sheeran said at the top of… pic.twitter.com/ZhtujolkKK
“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, not division, about humanity, not politics,” he said.
“But this is a humanitarian issue, and I cannot hide how I feel about it anymore. What happened in Israel and at the Nome Museum Festival on Oct. 7 was horrific and compounded centuries of Jewish pain. What is happening in Gaza is catastrophic and unjustifiable, and disproportionate. Our hearts can be broken by the scale of devastation and loss of civilians’ lives, children’s lives, and the systemic injustice we’re seeing unfold in the West Bank cannot be overlooked.”
“I am already speaking to people across the spectrum to work out how to make a contribution that helps victims of these terrible times, and listening and learning because I do not know enough.”
Then he said he wanted to sing his songs about "love, hope, and unity."
Sigh. Sheeran did nothing for which to apologize, yet now he's been made to bend the knee to the required orthodoxy to blunt the anger of the Left. And still, I saw responses from the Left on X, thinking he hadn't bent the knee enough, that he wasn't more critical of Israel; it wasn't enough for them.
A weak man. https://t.co/iD6wcd79Jr
— Wajahat Ali (@WajahatAli) September 20, 2026
Is he reading from a teleprompter to both sides a genocide? 🙄 https://t.co/rhTdH8zo0z
— AIPAC Tracker (@TrackAIPAC) September 20, 2026
It's not a genocide, no matter how many times you try to say it is.
Meanwhile, Sheeran should know that if he is going to "make a contribution," he should be very careful who he is donating money to because, depending on who you are giving it to, the result is that aid could end up in the hands of Hamas.
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