Robert Kraft Speaks Out After Being Accused Of Banning Macklemore From Ed Sheeran Concert Over “Palestine” Comment
This article was originally published on Total Pro Sports.
Robert Kraft is now in the middle of a stadium fight that started on a concert stage. Macklemore says the Patriots owner forced Ed Sheeran to cut him. Kraft says Gillette will not host that set.
The rapper opened two Loop Tour nights at MetLife Stadium on September 4 and 5. He chanted “Free Palestine,” spoke about Gaza, and played “Hind’s Hall.”
Images from the war hit the big screens. A keffiyeh came out onstage.
Days later, Messina Touring Group pulled him from the remaining U.S. dates. The promoter said venues would cancel rather than keep him on the bill. Hundreds of thousands of tickets sat at risk. The rapper then named Kraft as the man who made the call.
Macklemore Accused Robert Kraft Of An Ultimatum
Macklemore posted a long note on Instagram.
“Ed is my friend. I’ve known him for 13 years,” he wrote. “I told Ed multiple times on the phone, our friendship can’t change my responsibility to tell the truth about what happened [in Gaza].”
Then he pointed at Foxborough.
“Ed told me that Robert Kraft called him. We were scheduled to play Gillette Stadium later this month, which is owned by the Kraft Group. Ed told me that Kraft said I would not be allowed to perform in his stadium.”
He added one more claim.
“Ed also told me that Kraft had rallied some of the other stadium owners and collectively they gave him an ultimatum: if Macklemore stays on the tour, you will not be allowed to play in our venues.”
Gillette dates were set for September 25 and 26. Rolling Stone later listed other objecting venues, including stops in Philadelphia, Atlanta, Indianapolis, Charlotte, Arlington, and Tampa.
Robert Kraft Answers The Charge In Writing
Kraft sent Daily Mail a statement.
“Gillette Stadium has a longstanding commitment to providing a welcoming environment for all guests and ensuring that events held at our venue do not provide a platform for hate speech,” he said.
He tied the ban to the New Jersey shows.
“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 the move was not a denial of Palestinian suffering.
“Their pain and loss are real,” he wrote. He argued advocacy should not “come at the expense of the Jewish community or obscure the responsibility of Hamas.”
He also said he has funded work in Palestine and wants a sit-down with Macklemore.
Macklemore said he hopes the 13-year friendship with Sheeran survives.
