Ed Sheeran has broken his silence on the ongoing Israel-Gaza conflict at his first show since removing Macklemore as his opening act due to the rapper’s vocal support of Palestine. The “Shape of You” singer addressed the controversy during his performance at Lincoln Financial Field Stadium in Philadelphia on September 19, marking his first concert since the departure of several support acts, including FINNEAS, Lukas Graham, and Aaron Row, who withdrew in solidarity with the “Downtown” hitmaker.
“This is not usually how I would open the show, but before I play some songs tonight, I hope it’s okay if I say a few words about this last week,” Sheeran told the audience. “I’m used to my music being criticized, and I’m always happy to take that because I’m lucky a lot of you like my stuff. But this week, the criticism was about something much more important, and I’ve had to take and make difficult decisions, and I am making mistakes, and I’m so so sorry.”
Sheeran emphasized his desire to maintain his concerts as a “safe space” while navigating the complexities of the situation. “I don’t want to disappoint fans, and I’ve never wanted to be an activist musician, but this has put me in the middle of an important and passionate argument about freedom of speech and the most complex political issue on the planet,” he explained. “Honoring my commitment to my fans is also completely essential to who I am, and that is why I’m here tonight on my own and continuing my current tour.”
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The singer also expressed concern regarding the precedent of venues pre-approving content for performers, stating, “I am deeply worried about the idea that venues should pre-approve content for performers. This happens in so many places that I perform around the world, but it should never happen in the free world.”
Addressing the conflict directly, Sheeran stated, “What happened in Israel and at the Nova Music Festival on October 7 was horrific and compounded centuries of Jewish pain. What is happening in Gaza is catastrophic, unjustifiable, and disproportionate. My heart has been broken by the scale of devastation and loss of civilians’ lives, of children’s lives. The systemic injustice we’re seeing unfold in the West Bank cannot be overlooked.”
He concluded by reaffirming his commitment to unity, noting that he is currently listening and learning to determine how he can best contribute to helping victims of the conflict.
