Macklemore pledges reported US$1m tour earnings to Palestinian groups
The rapper says the money will go to six organisations supporting Palestinians and challenges Robert Kraft to match the donation.
Macklemore says he will donate the entire US$1 million he earned from Ed Sheeran’s Loop Tour to six organisations working directly to support Palestinians.
The rapper announced the pledge on Instagram on Wednesday, according to Al Jazeera. The recipient organisations were not named, and the amount has not been independently confirmed.
Macklemore also challenged Robert Kraft, owner of the New England Patriots, to match the donation. Kraft confirmed this week that Macklemore had been barred from performing at Gillette Stadium in Massachusetts.
Kraft said Ed Sheeran had asked him to commit US$2 million in humanitarian aid to the region. He said Sheeran planned to approach other venue owners to raise further funds, although the timing and scope of that effort remain unclear.
The donation follows Macklemore’s removal from the remaining United States dates of Sheeran’s tour after he made pro-Palestinian remarks during performances at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey. Sheeran has said the decision was ultimately made by the tour promoter, rather than by him.
Other supporting acts have reportedly withdrawn from the upcoming US dates in solidarity with Macklemore. Kraft has described the rapper’s past statements as including “antisemitic rhetoric and imagery”, while saying his opposition to the performance was not intended to diminish Palestinian suffering.
