The growing fallout over Macklemore's exit from Ed Sheeran's tour

Geoff Bennett:

The debate over the war in Gaza continues to reverberate throughout politics and pop culture. And, this week, it erupted once again, leading to tough criticism of two musical artists and blowing up plans for a concert tour.

Anger erupted after the rapper Macklemore was kicked off musician Ed Sheeran's stadium tour. Sheeran, one of the most streamed artists in the world, said Macklemore had to be dropped as an opening act because venue owners objected to Macklemore's recent pro-Palestinian comments on stage.

Macklemore, Musician:

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.

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.

Geoff Bennett:

In a statement, Sheeran said the decision was made not because of his own personal politics. Instead, he laid the blame on his tour promoter after upcoming venues threatened to cancel shows if Macklemore continued to play.

Yesterday, all four of Ed Sheeran's other supporting acts dropped out of the tour in protest.

For more, we're joined now by Ben Sisario. He's a reporter at The New York Times covering the music industry.

Ben, thanks for being with us.

Help us understand what happened here.

Ben Sisario:

Well, I mean, as you said, just in politics and a lot of other parts of culture, positions on the war in Gaza have really been a third rail in a lot of ways.

But this flared up in a big way in music because of this tour, because Ed Sheeran, one of the most popular artists in the world, and because of the apparent pressure that was put on him by the owners of stadiums around the country. They were apparently the ones that objected so strongly to Macklemore's comments.

He also he has a protest song that he released a couple of years ago, again about the war, and in it he accuses Israel of genocide, and he shows his solidarity with student protesters in the U.S. and in New York. So his position has been widely known. I mean, this was not a surprise.

But the idea that the owners of stadiums, including Robert Kraft, the owner of the New England Patriots, apparently demanded that he be removed from the tour, and Ed Sheeran did not object.

Geoff Bennett:

And Robert Kraft said that this wasn't just about Macklemore's support for the Palestinian issue, but what he calls a broader history of antisemitic rhetoric and imagery.

Macklemore says he's being punished for political speech. Where do you see this line being drawn?

Ben Sisario:

Well, I mean, it certainly is about speech. And it's interesting that some of the venues, at least some of the venues that he was planning to go to on the tour are publicly owned. The next stop on the tour is in Philadelphia, and I believe the stadium there is owned by the city of Philadelphia.

But this is a rare example of the owners of these venues and of the teams, which most of them are billionaire businessmen, putting their foot down so strongly. And the reaction on social media and around the world has been very strong about this, some in support.

I mean, some agree with Mr. Kraft fully. But I think there's a -- there's an even stronger objection, especially among music fans and in the music industry, that a venue owner could dictate this, and that Ed Sheeran is perceived as caving into that pressure, rather than standing up for the artist that he chose to have on his tour.

And once Sheeran made his statement on Tuesday where he said, it wasn't me, it was the promoters and the venues, that is when you saw every other artist on his tour, the other opening acts, and even the Irish traditional band that backs Sheeran up for part of his show, they all bailed within a couple of hours.

Geoff Bennett:

So there's also this question of consistency. Kanye West has an extensive, well-documented history of making antisemitic statements, and yet he continues to find venues and audiences. So where's where's the line in the sand?

Ben Sisario:

Well, I mean, lots of people on social media have been calling this total hypocrisy. And it may indeed be. But if there is a line in the sand, it seems to be Gaza. It seems to be that is the issue that was intolerable to venue owners like Robert Kraft.

A lot of other stadium venue owners around the country didn't seem to have a problem with Kanye West being there. He has a song called "Heil Hitler," although I don't think it was on the set list for those shows. But, I mean, as you said, he has been absolutely outrageous in the past with antisemitism, with truly offensive comments, and he's been able to book a success -- he's been able to book a successful tour.

Geoff Bennett:

So is the line now not what you say, but how much leverage you have and commercial success you have when you say it?

Ben Sisario:

That may be the case, but I also think it is specifically about the political issue of the war in Gaza, and whether criticism of Israel's stance and Israel's actions in that war is considered allowable.

Geoff Bennett:

Ben Sisario of The New York Times, thanks again for being with us this evening.

Ben Sisario:

Thank you.