Macklemore Pledges Entire $1m Ed Sheeran Tour Fee to Palestine

US rapper Macklemore has pledged his entire $1m tour earnings to Palestinian relief organisations after being dropped from Ed Sheeran’s Loop Tour for making pro-Palestine comments onstage.

Macklemore, real name Ben Haggerty, announced the donation days after being removed from the remaining US dates of the tour, following pressure from pro-Israel billionaire and AIPAC mega-donor Robert Kraft. 

In a statement shared on Instagram on Wednesday, Mackelmore said: “I want to bring the conversation back to where it belongs: to the Palestinian people who are still being killed, still living under occupation and still fighting for their freedom.

“I will be donating the entire $1 million of my net earnings from Ed Sheeran’s Loop Tour to six organizations working directly to support the Palestinian people.”

He also challenged Kraft to match his donation. 

Kraft issued a statement in response, saying that Sheeran had “called” and “asked me to commit $2m to match his donation to aid in the region to fight this humanitarian crisis”.

The Kraft Group CEO and New England Patriots owner, worth a reported $13bn, did not specify which organisations would receive the money. 

Macklemore’s $1m will be going to six Palestinian relief organisations: Palestine Children’s Relief Fund, Anera, HEAL Palestine, Medical Aid for Palestinians, Gaza Soup Kitchen and UNRWA USA.

Following the decision to drop Macklemore, every single one of Sheeran’s support acts – including his backing band – quit the tour. Billie Eilish’s brother Finneas, Danish artist Lukas Graham, Irish artist Aaron Rowe and Sheeran’s Irish on-stage band Beoga all posted statements saying they were leaving the tour in solidarity with the Palestinian people. 

Ed Sheeran has now faced days of online backlash – and received support from far-right activist Tommy Robinson.

Kraft, who is Jewish, accused Macklemore of hate speech after the rapper shouted “free Palestine” on stage. On the second night of his support slot, Macklemore addressed his “Jewish brothers and sisters” and said: “Criticism of Israel, criticism of apartheid, being against genocide, is in no way a criticism of you.”

Following the controversy, Macklemore’s 2024 single Hind’s Hall, which references the killing of 5-year-old Hind Rajab in Gaza by the IDF, has shot up to number three in the US iTunes charts along with some of the rapper’s other hits.