Ed Sheeran breaks silence: "I am not complicit"
Musician; tour headliner
“Macklemore coming off tour was the promoter's decision, it was not mine... I am not complicit. 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... I respect Macklemore's strength of purpose to stand up and shout for what he believes. However, there is room for multiple approaches to the same end: Peace.”
Source and context
Original post
About this source
Ed Sheeran’s own account, @teddysphotos, posting the statement in which he says the promoter and venues made the decision. The post was opened and its author, account and posting date were confirmed directly. The body of the statement is published as images rather than caption text, so the wording quoted in the Dispute Index record is taken from news transcription of those images, not read from the post itself.
Before the quotation
Posted to Instagram on September 15, 2026, after remaining publicly silent on the controversy.
After the quotation
This was the first substantive public statement from Sheeran since Macklemore's removal.
How this statement is classified
Case context: Macklemore’s “Free Palestine” speech and removal from Ed Sheeran’s U.S. tour
The label describes this statement’s response within the context above.
Why this label?
Sheeran distances himself from the removal decision and affirms he is "not complicit," while also saying he respects Macklemore's approach and suggesting his own different, quieter approach serves the same goal of peace — combining a partial defense of Macklemore with a deliberate choice not to take the same public stance himself, rather than clearly condemning or endorsing the removal.
- Recorded on
- Published here
- People and groups discussed
- Macklemore
Macklemore’s “Free Palestine” speech and removal from Ed Sheeran’s U.S. tour
Explore the case context, sources and public responses.
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Lukas Graham
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