On Saturday night, Sheeran performed his first concert since the storm of criticism after Macklemore was fired as a support act.
He opened the concert in Philadelphia by talking about the situation that has received a lot of attention in the past week. The 35-year-old has received scathing criticism since rapper Macklemore was fired as a support act by the tour promoter, due to his pro-Palestinian messages during previous concerts.
"I've had to make a lot of tough decisions and I make mistakes. I'm so, so sorry," said Sheeran, who read the statement from a teleprompter.
“Will never happen”
He says he doesn't think organisers should have the right to "pre-approve" content at concerts.
"It should never happen in the free world," says Sheeran, repeating his previous message that he does not want to mix politics into his artistry.
But this is a humanitarian issue, he says, calling the situation the world's most complicated issue.
What happened in Israel at the Nova music festival on October 7th was horrific and exacerbated centuries of Jewish pain. What is happening in Gaza is catastrophic, unjustifiable and disproportionate.
Ahead of tonight's concert, Sheeran had also redesigned the set. Normally, he has a stage in the middle of the audience that he walks out onto during the concert, but it was now gone.
"I didn't know what this crowd was going to be like tonight. I didn't know if I was going to get things thrown at me," Sheeran admits.
Unit deserted
Macklemore was kicked out as a support act after he shouted "Free Palestine" during Sheeran's concerts in New Jersey on September 4-5 and performed his song "Hind's Hall", whose lyrics describe Israel's war in Gaza as genocide.
All other bands have dropped out of the tour in solidarity with Macklemore, and Sheeran performed alone during tonight's concert.
Pro-Palestinian groups have called for both a boycott of Sheeran's tour and demonstrations outside the venues. Before the concert in Philadelphia, about 50 demonstrators gathered with placards and the Palestinian flag to protest.
