Ed Sheeran’s Loop Tour is coming apart at the seams as Finneas, opener Aaron Rowe, Lukas Graham, and Sheeran’s own house band Beoga have all dropped out in solidarity with Macklemore’s dismissal – which leaves the remainder of his tour without an opener.
Finneas, who was slated to join Sheeran on the South American portion of the tour, announced he was dropping out on Instagram Tuesday.
“Artists must not be silenced when they speak up for the oppressed,” he wrote. “I have decided to withdraw my upcoming tour dates with Ed Sheeran. I stand with Palestine and its people.”
Rowe posted to Instagram on Tuesday as well, notifying his fans of his choice to drop out as Sheeran’s opener.
“I have made the decision to withdraw as a support act for Ed Sheeran’s ‘The Loop’ North American Tour,” Rowe wrote. “I don’t take the decision lightly. Ed has been a friend to me and has changed my life, I could never thank him enough for this.”
He added: “But as Irish people, we know all too well about genocide, forced famine and violent occupation. I cannot stand by and allow billionaires to use their position of power to silence the rightful voices of those who speak up against Israeli genocide and who highlight the savage murder of children. I would lose all respect for myself to carry on as normal. I need to be true to myself and my ancestors who resisted colonisation, and fought for a freedom that I enjoy today in Ireland.”
Sheeran’s house band Beoga also added their names to the list of artists who were leaving the Loop Tour. Graham joined the cavalcade of dropouts shortly after.
“We have been friends with Ed for over 10 years now and will continue to be,” the band wrote on their own Instagram. “We believe in dialogue as a means of progressing the plight of the Palestinian people … We are Irish people who understand colonialism. As founding members of the Irish Artists for Palestine movement, we are committed activists for justice and will continue to be.”
With all the dropouts, that leaves the Sheeran’s remaining tour dates without a single opener. The Loop Tour was in progress when Macklemore was dropped and was planned to run through December. Finneas was scheduled to join for the South American leg of the tour which begins in November.
TheWrap reached out to Sheeran for comment but did not hear back.
Sheeran shared his side of the story earlier on Tuesday, a day after Macklemore was dropped from the Loop Tour for sharing his pro-Palestine stance onstage.
“Macklemore coming off tour was the promoter’s decision. It was not mine. Macklemore’s contract for the tour was with the promoter, not me,” Sheeran explained. “I would never let down the fans who had made plans, nor would I abandon the touring crew and the other support acts and musicians who rely on me for work and to make a living.”
The “Shape of You” singer’s statement appears to corroborate both Macklemore and Robert Kraft’s version of events after the rapper blamed the billionaire for his removal due to his “Free Palestine” messaging.
Macklemore was originally scheduled to open for eight more shows on Sheeran’s tour, kicking back up Friday in Philadelphia. These updates come a week after the Israeli American Council condemned his pro-Palestine messaging, issuing a petition for his removal from the tour.
For his part, Macklemore made sure to point out that “Antisemitism is real” in his initial statement, while also noting that “more than 20,000 children have been killed in Gaza alone.”
“Ed was in a f–ked up position. He knew it. His typical apolitical stance was being challenged in a way it never had been before,” Macklemore wrote on Monday. “But he couldn’t get past his public-facing ‘I don’t take sides.’”
He finished: “I didn’t need 10 shows from Ed. I needed two. Two chances to stand in front of 90,000 people and say the words that somehow became too dangerous to say. Free Palestine. If those words cost me the stage, while turning the conversation back to Palestine, then it was the most successful tour I’ve been on.”
