Music

The Internet Reacts to Ed Sheeran’s Statement on Dropping Macklemore

BYYassine Hariss

September 16, 2026

It probably sucks to be Ed Sheeran right now. In case you’ve somehow missed the controversy around his Loop Tour, the 35-year-old singer-songwriter has found himself under intense scrutiny after Macklemore was suddenly dropped from its remaining dates, just days after the Seattle rapper used one of his opening sets to voice his support for Palestine.

The decision reportedly came after promoters and venue owners pressured Sheeran to remove Macklemore from the remaining dates of the tour. Macklemore eventually addressed the situation himself, making it fairly clear that losing a handful of shows was hardly keeping him up at night. As far as he was concerned, the message mattered considerably more, and by then, tens of thousands of people had already heard it. He also appeared to have a few words for Sheeran, suggesting that when the pressure mounted, the singer ultimately chose to give in rather than stand beside him.

Taking to social media to address the growing controversy, the British-Irish singer attempted to explain how Macklemore had disappeared from the remaining dates of his tour, seemingly hoping to put some of the speculation surrounding his removal to rest.

Across a carousel of slides, Sheeran argued that Macklemore’s removal was ultimately out of his hands, explaining that the rapper’s agreement was with the tour promoter rather than with him directly. Cancelling the shows himself was apparently off the table, too. Sheeran pointed to the hundreds of people who rely on his tours for their livelihoods, framing cancellation as a decision that would affect far more people than himself. Still, as we’ve previously noted, it is difficult to accept that those were the only two options available to an artist with Sheeran’s considerable resources. Someone with his wealth and influence could, and arguably should, have explored another way forward.

Sheeran also insisted that keeping his views private should not be mistaken for having no views at all, which feels like a strange defense when the subject at hand is a genocide. He went on to explain that he never wants anyone attending his shows to feel uncomfortable or alienated, an argument that inevitably raises questions about why the same concern did not prevent him from publicly supporting Ukraine following Russia’s invasion. Then came his description of Gaza through the familiar language of suffering “on both sides,” a framing that flattened a profound imbalance in power and was hardly likely to make the statement land any better.

Within hours of his own statement addressing Macklemore’s removal, every remaining opening act on the Loop Tour pulled out in solidarity with the rapper. Finneas, Lukas Graham and Aaron Rowe all announced they would no longer perform on their scheduled dates, while Beoga, the Irish group that had been performing as part of Sheeran’s touring band, also walked away.

Since then, the internet has been predictably unforgiving, picking apart everything from the contradictions in Sheeran’s explanation to the rather convenient decision to switch off the comments beneath it. Of course, disabling the replies did little to stop the conversation. People simply took their thoughts elsewhere, and there were plenty of them.

Maybe not my place to say it but Ed Sheeran should be kicked off of being Irish
— Sammy Obeid (@SammyObeid) September 15, 2026

big day for ed sheeran haters
— Sarah Everett (@goddammitsarah) September 14, 2026

Ed Sheeran watches WW2 documentaries with a half and half scarf on
— 𝐃𝐈𝐆𝐁 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 (@_DIGB) September 16, 2026

Damn I’m in such a tough spot. I really want to say that it’s wrong to kill children but I don’t want to upset my agent Josh Childkiller
— Mike Recine (@mikerecine) September 14, 2026

“My fans are too young to hear about Genocide”
Does Ed Sheeran know that the main victims of this Genocide ARE children?
— Luul 🍉 (@RealZamzampappi) September 15, 2026

How do I boycott Ed Sheeran when my previous consumption of his work was zero
— Rabbi Jeff (@RabbiJeffx) September 16, 2026

when your tour don’t look like it used to before pic.twitter.com/e2H8M7UC3N
— ethical hater (@DijahSB) September 15, 2026

The Internet Reacts to Ed Sheeran’s Statement on Dropping Macklemore

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