Macklemore has long advocated for an end to the conflict in Gaza, but many Ed Sheeran fans are only now learning of his stance. The Seattle rapper currently serves as an opening act on Sheeran’s North American stadium tour, using the platform to promote Palestinian liberation and other causes. A pro-Israel organization has since launched a petition demanding his removal from the tour.
Midway through his opening set at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey on Friday, Macklemore delivered the same speech he has been giving throughout the tour. He subsequently posted video footage of the address on Instagram.
I’ve been trying to figure out a way to say this all day. One of the reasons why I wanted to come on this tour was because I wanted to stand up here on stages in stadiums across America and say two words that are very near and dear to my heart: “Free Palestine.” I said, “Free Palestine!” I want those words to be loud and clear so that people from Gaza, all the way to the occupied West Bank know that we have not forgotten them.
And this next song was inspired by the bravery of Columbia University students who led an encampment movement that mobilized the entire world. Opened up hearts, myself included. So thank you to those students that risked their diplomas, that risked their tuition, that risked their scholarships, that stood up and said, “No.” CUAD students, Students For Justice In Palestine, and Jewish Voices For Peace. Thank you guys.
To all of my Jewish brothers and sisters: Criticism of Israel, criticism of apartheid, being against genocide in no way is a criticism of you. My message is for peace. Love. For all human beings to be treated with dignity, respect, and equality. So I say free Palestine. I say free Lebanon. I say free Cuba. I say free Congo, free Sudan, free all people in America living in fear over this terrorist organization ICE. None of us will be free until we are all free.
Macklemore followed with a performance of “Hind’s Hall,” a track released two years ago in solidarity with Columbia University protesters who occupied Hamilton Hall and renamed it after Hind Rajab, a six-year-old Palestinian girl killed with her family in Gaza.
Following the speech and performance, the Israeli American Council published a petition urging Sheeran to drop Macklemore from the tour. Titled “Ed Sheeran – Your Show. Your Stage. Your Responsibility!,” the petition states:
This was an Ed Sheeran concert – not a political rally, not a protest, and not an activist event.
The issue is not whether Macklemore has the right to hold political views. The question is where the line should be drawn when an opening act uses a global concert platform to advance a one-sided political agenda.
This becomes even more troubling when the message relies on selective imagery, biased messaging, and disputed claims presented to a massive audience as fact, without context or complexity.
The decision to perform Hind’s Hall was not incidental. The song was written in explicit support of the campus protest movement and takes its name from “Hind’s Hall” the name protesters gave Columbia University’s Hamilton Hall after occupying the building.
Some of those protests involved trespassing, building occupations, vandalism, disruption of university operations, and violations of the law – conduct that stands in direct conflict with core American values, including the rule of law, open discourse, respect for institutions, and shared civic space.
The petition further demands that tour leadership disclose whether Macklemore’s political remarks, visual content, and performance of “Hind’s Hall” were preapproved, and calls for clear guidelines on using the tour stage for political messaging. The document does not indicate how many signatures it has gathered.
This marks a recurring pattern of controversy for Macklemore. In 2024, he was removed from the Neon City festival lineup in Las Vegas after debuting “Hind’s Hall 2” and declaring “Fuck America” during a pro-Palestine concert in Seattle. He later issued a statement clarifying his position, prompting Seattle sports franchises—including the Mariners, Sounders, and Storm—to reevaluate their associations with him. In 2025, he released another protest track titled “Fucked Up.”