Ed Sheeran admitted he considered canceling the remainder of his “LOOP” US tour and felt abandoned by certain friends and family in the wake of the controversy surrounding Macklemore’s removal from the tour, but ultimately decided to move forward after seeing that fans were still holding on to tickets for his concert in Philadelphia on Saturday night.
In the second of two speeches addressing the events of the past week, delivered near the end of his show at Philadelphia’s Lincoln Financial Field on Saturday, an emotional Ed Sheeran said, “The last week of my life has been one of the worst weeks of my life. Today has been one of the weirdest days of my life. Tonight has been honestly the best show of my life – the best show.”
“I really didn’t know whether this tour would be carrying on,” he continued. “I really didn’t know whether I’d even be getting on stage again, whether I even wanted to be an artist at all. In these situations, you really find out who your friends are, and it’s been a weird week. I just feel like it happened very quickly. And the whole time, I had so many people telling me to cancel this tour, and so many people coming out of my life that I’ve known for years and years and years just kind of backing away.”
Controversy Surrounding Macklemore’s Removal
Macklemore was removed as a support act from the tour after several stadium operators, led by New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft, objected to the Seattle rapper‘s previous remarks in support of Palestine and threatened to block him from performing if he remained on the bill. In response to Macklemore‘s removal, Ed Sheeran‘s remaining openers – FINNEAS, Lukas Graham, and Aaron Rowe – along with his live backing band Beoga, withdrew from the tour in solidarity with Macklemore and Palestine.
Ed Sheeran opened the night by addressing the controversy, concerns over venues restricting artists’ speech, and his own views on Israel and Palestine. He also admitted worrying about potential security threats, which led him to scrap the use of his B-stage, typically positioned in the middle of the audience. “I heard all sorts of things were going to happen. I didn’t know whether I’d be safe, or you’d be safe, or things would be thrown at me, or people would boo,” he said.
Ed Sheeran’s Decision to Move Forward
However, Ed Sheeran said he was heartened by the ticket sales for Philadelphia. “I didn’t see cancellations – I saw people buying tickets for this gig…. I see 50,000 people who haven’t abandoned me.”
“People will say what they want, but I am doing this for you,” Ed Sheeran said of his decision to move forward with the tour. “I love you. I love this. I love what this concert brings. I love bringing people together from all backgrounds, all races, all religions, all political ideas. Lots of people here have differing opinions, and we’ve had a great night. You are standing next to people and dancing with people you may disagree with, but you probably understand them better by being one and loved. And I have had so many opinions on this, but the root of it is love. And if this tour ends, love doesn’t win. Love doesn’t win.”
In his closing speech, Ed Sheeran thanked the fans for their support and apologized for the first part of the show where he had to address the controversy. He emphasized that his shows are about unity, love, and family, and that he will never stop doing what he loves. “Philadelphia, thank you,” he concluded.
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