Ed Sheeran is speaking out about the controversy involving Macklemore, New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft and Gillette Stadium, revealing that he personally spoke with Kraft while trying to find a way forward.
Sheeran addressed the situation in a lengthy statement on Tuesday, September 15, after Macklemore said he had been removed from Sheeran’s “Loop Tour” following his recent performances at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.
For Patriots fans, the most notable new detail involves Kraft. Sheeran confirmed that the longtime Patriots owner was among the people he spoke with as he tried to resolve the situation before upcoming tour dates, including two scheduled shows at Gillette Stadium on September 25 and 26.
“I spoke with the venues at length all week to try and build a bridge,” Sheeran wrote. “One of those people was Robert Kraft. I was also involved in direct talks with promoters along with activists on both sides to try and find a mutual resolution for all, but the venue’s and promoter’s decision was final.”
Sheeran’s statement comes one day after Macklemore publicly discussed his removal from the tour and specifically named Kraft while describing what he said happened behind the scenes.
Ed Sheeran Reveals Direct Talks With Robert Kraft
Macklemore said Monday that Sheeran told him Kraft had called after the rapper’s performances at MetLife Stadium and that he would not be permitted to perform at Gillette Stadium.
Macklemore also alleged that Kraft had contacted other stadium owners, presenting Sheeran with an ultimatum if Macklemore remained on the tour.
Sheeran’s new statement confirms that he spoke directly with Kraft as part of his efforts to reach a resolution. It does not, however, independently confirm every element of Macklemore’s account about Kraft’s conversations with other venue owners.
Sheeran said venues informed him that upcoming shows could be pulled if Macklemore continued as a supporting act.
“After Macklemore’s performances at my New Jersey shows, venues on my upcoming tour dates communicated that they would pull the shows if he was still supporting,” Sheeran wrote. “I was informed that this stance was based on how Macklemore conveyed part of his message during his performance, rather than on everything that was said.”
Sheeran also pushed back on the suggestion that he personally decided to remove Macklemore.
“Macklemore coming off tour was the promoter’s decision, it was not mine,” Sheeran wrote. “Macklemore’s contract for the tour was with the promoter, not me.”
Sheeran said he would not abandon the fans who had already made plans to attend the concerts or the touring employees, support acts and musicians who rely on the shows for work.
Robert Kraft Explains Gillette Stadium Decision
Kraft has also addressed the decision involving the two upcoming Gillette Stadium dates.
“Based on Macklemore’s recent actions, material shared from the stage during Ed Sheeran’s shows in New Jersey, and a broader history of antisemitic rhetoric and imagery that we believe has been deeply offensive and hurtful to the Jewish community, we determined that his participation in the September 25th and 26th concerts at Gillette Stadium would cross that line,” Kraft said in a statement to Page Six.
Macklemore had yelled “Free Palestine” during Sheeran’s New Jersey shows and incorporated imagery related to Gaza into his performances.
Sheeran, meanwhile, said in his Tuesday statement that he is “appalled by the conflict between Israel and Palestine” and defended his decision not to regularly make his political views public.
“I am not complicit,” Sheeran wrote. “I have my personal views on this devastating conflict. Just because I choose not to speak publicly, it doesn’t mean I don’t have them, and it doesn’t mean I don’t care.”
He also expressed respect for Macklemore’s willingness to speak publicly about his beliefs, writing that there can be “multiple approaches to the same end: peace.”
The latest statements provide additional context to a dispute that initially centered on Macklemore and Sheeran but has increasingly drawn Kraft and Gillette Stadium into the story.
Sheeran confirms that he and Kraft spoke directly while efforts were underway to find a resolution. But his account also draws an important distinction over who ultimately removed Macklemore from the tour: Sheeran says that decision belonged to the promoter, not him.
Ed Sheeran Breaks Silence on Robert Kraft, Gillette Stadium Controversy