Ed Sheeran says situation in Gaza is 'catastrophic and unjustifiable' as he opens solo concert

NPR News Sunday 20 September 2026, 03:34 UTC By The Associated Press 1 min read

Key Points

Ed Sheeran opened a solo concert Saturday with comments about Gaza after controversy swirled around his tour and supporting acts withdrew in solidarity with opener Macklemore, who was dropped after making pro-Palestinian comments onstage.(Image credit: Evan Agostini)

(Image credit: Evan Agostini)

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Ed Sheeran (PERSON) Gaza (LOCATION) solidarity (ORG) Macklemore (ORG) pro-Palestinian (ORG) Evan Agostini (PERSON)

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Ed Sheeran opens solo concert with comments about Gaza NewsFeed Ed Sheeran opens solo concert with comments about Gaza Ed Sheeran has addressed the Macklemore-Palestine fallout in remarks at his solo concert in Philadelphia. Sheeran has faced intense backlash after Macklemore was dropped from the concert tour over his ‘Free Palestine’ comments. Published On 20 Sep 2026

Al Jazeera 1h ago

Watch: Concertgoers and pro-Palestinian activists arrive at Ed Sheeran concert

Some Ed Sheeran fans say they are excited to enjoy music and are not there for politics after Macklemore was dropped from the tour for making pro-Palestinian comments.

BBC World 1h ago

READ IT: Ed Sheeran's pre-concert speech to Philly crowd about the Gaza controversy

Here is the full text of singer Ed Sheeran's speech before his Philadelphia concert Saturday night on the ongoing controversy after Macklemore was dropped as an opening act for making "free Palestine" comments and his other opening acts pulled out of his tour. "This is not usually how I open a show, but before I play some songs tonight I hope it’s OK if I say a few words about this last week. I’m used to my music being criticized, and I’m always happy to take that because I’m lucky a lot of...

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South China Morning Post 3h ago

Ed Sheeran says situation in Gaza is 'catastrophic and unjustifiable' as he opens solo concert

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Ed Sheeran opens solo concert with comments about Gaza

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