An Israeli-American advocacy group is calling on Ed Sheeran to remove rapper Macklemore from the remaining dates of his Loop Tour after accusing the opening act of using Sheeran’s MetLife Stadium concert in New Jersey to promote a one-sided anti-Israel political message.
The Israeli-American Council, or IAC, launched a petition addressed to Sheeran, tour organizers and the venues hosting the remaining shows after Macklemore used his opening set before more than 80,000 people to call for “Free Palestine” and perform his song “Hind’s Hall” while images from Gaza and other political messaging appeared on the stadium’s giant screens.
“This was an Ed Sheeran concert, not a political rally, not a protest, and not an activist event,” the petition says. “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.”
The group argues that the presentation relied on “selective imagery, biased messaging, and disputed claims presented to a massive audience as fact, without context or complexity.”
The petition also singles out Macklemore’s decision to perform “Hind’s Hall,” a song written in support of the pro-Palestinian campus protest movement.
The title refers to the name protesters gave Columbia University’s Hamilton Hall after demonstrators broke into and occupied the building during campus protests. The IAC said the song’s inclusion made the political nature of the performance unmistakable.
“The decision to perform ‘Hind’s Hall’ was not incidental,” the petition says, arguing that some of the campus protests involved trespassing, building occupations, vandalism and other violations of the law.
The IAC is demanding that Macklemore be removed from the remaining tour dates and that organizers establish clear boundaries on the use of the concert stage for political messaging.
“Freedom of expression does not mean freedom from responsibility. Your show. Your stage. Your responsibility,” the petition says.
The group is also urging supporters to contact Live Nation directly and demand action.
The Israeli-American Council, founded in Los Angeles in 2007, describes itself as the largest Israeli-American community organization in the United States, with operations in 100 communities and on 58 campuses.
Since October 7, the organization says it has expanded its activity around antisemitism, efforts to support the hostages, leadership programs and partnerships with pro-Israel groups across the United States.