{
  "id": 7417114,
  "title": "Macklemore dropped from Ed Sheeran’s tour after ‘free Palestine’ speech",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/14/macklemore-dropped-from-ed-sheerans-tour-after-free-palestine-speech-7417114",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-09-14T22:22:25.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Free Malaysia Today",
    "slug": "free-malaysia-today-freemalays",
    "url": "https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/leisure/2026/09/15/macklemore-dropped-from-ed-sheeran-s-tour-after-free-palestine-speech"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Macklemore, famous for hits like \"Thrift Shop\" and \"Can't Hold Us,\" was removed from Ed Sheeran's US tour after making a \"free Palestine\" statement at a recent stadium appearance. This sparked controversy and accusations of antisemitism, leading stadium owners to prohibit Macklemore from performing on the remaining tour dates. Messina Touring Group, promoting Sheeran's US Loop Tour, cited venues' refusal to host Macklemore, which would cause the tour's cancellation and affect hundreds of thousands of fans. Despite his typical apolitical stance, Macklemore expressed hope that this wouldn't harm his friendship with Sheeran, acknowledging it was the most successful tour in his career if it meant addressing Palestine. The Israeli-Palestinian conflict intensified in October 2023 when Hamas attacked Israel, with the Israeli military response leaving over 73,000 casualties, according to Hamas-run health authority figures recognized by the UN.",
  "summary": "The US rapper made headlines by expressing solidarity with people in Gaza and the West Bank during a performance in New Jersey.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Free Malaysia Today",
        "title": "Macklemore dropped from Ed Sheeran’s tour after ‘free Palestine’ speech",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/14/macklemore-dropped-from-ed-sheerans-tour-after-free-palestine-speech",
        "published": "2026-09-14T22:22:25.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}