Macklemore claims nine major U.S. arenas have refused to host his Free Palestine fundraising tour, denouncing tactics of “intimidation, manipulation and repression.”
In an Instagram post, the rapper said he hoped to bring the tour to the United States, but nine major arenas declined to host the event, including New York’s Madison Square Garden, Los Angeles’ Crypto.com Arena and Brooklyn’s Barclays Center.
Last month, Macklemore headlined the Free Palestine tour in Dublin, London and Paris in a show hailed by the Guardian’s Alexis Petridis as “a triumph”. These concerts took place after Ed Sheeran dropped the rapper from his US tour after he gave a speech on stage in support of Palestine.
“From the beginning, our plan was to bring this tour back to the United States,” Macklemore wrote. “But after weeks of contact, nine major U.S. arenas declined to bid on us.”
Macklemore said other venues in the New York tri-state area, including UBS Arena and the Prudential Center, had declined, as well as Los Angeles’ Intuit Dome and Kia Forum, San Francisco’s Chase Center and Seattle’s Climate Pledge Arena.
“In mid-September, we received the available dates in these arenas through the end of the year. But once they found out that these were my benefit shows for Palestine, those dates were suddenly pushed aside,” he said.
“The doors were closed. The conversations were all different, but the outcome was the same. Shows were not going to be allowed in those venues.”
In an impassioned post that spanned seven Instagram slides, Macklemore said he no longer cares about cutting ties with the music industry’s top dogs.
“The intimidation, manipulation and repression I experienced is part of how those in power keep artists silent,” he said. “That’s their main tactic to keep us in line. Shut up and dribble, or you’ll be punished.
“But at this point, I’m three years into not caring about maintaining relationships, professional or personal, with anyone who doesn’t advocate for a free Palestine.”
After giving a brief speech in support of “the occupied West Bank” in early September while opening for Sheeran, Macklemore was dropped from the tour. Sheeran claimed US venues told him they would refuse to host the show if the rapper continued to headline the tour.
“I’m not complicit,” Sheeran said. “I have my personal opinions on this devastating conflict. Just because I choose not to speak publicly doesn’t mean I don’t have them, and it doesn’t mean I don’t care. It also doesn’t mean I don’t support causes in my own way.”
Shortly after, the opening four acts as well as Sheeran’s live band left the tour in solidarity with Macklemore.
On social media, the rapper said: “I would rather lose every opportunity in this industry than spend another day protecting people who value their business relationship with Israel more than Palestinian human life.”
“I dream of a world where saying free Palestine is not controversial,” he added. “It’s expected. Where artists value their freedom of expression and collective liberation more than their brand deals.
“Look what just happened in Europe,” he continued, referring to his concerts in Dublin, Paris and London. “Three sold-out arenas. Tens of thousands of people from different backgrounds, religions and backgrounds came together. Over forty artists and speakers put their names and platforms behind Palestinian liberation. Despite all attempts to portray this movement as one rooted in hatred, what filled these halls was love.”
Macklemore added that the political mood in the United States was changing following the Democrats’ victory in the midterm elections this week.
“The wind is turning,” he wrote. “Just three nights ago, Abdul El-Sayed won his Senate race on a platform that included ending the genocide in Gaza and stopping U.S. arms sales to Israel. AIPAC spent $42 million trying to defeat him. And they still failed to win.”
“The problem with purchasing power is believing that you have also bought the people. The billionaires depend on our silence and our complicity. They forget that we buy their tickets. We fill their arenas. We build their empires. And we have the power to bring them down.”
The rapper closed his statement by promising that more shows in support of Palestine would follow.
“There will be more shows for Palestine,” he said. “We’re going to continue working with other artists and organizers, continuing where we left off in Europe. We’ll probably just release this shit where it needed to be.
“Our commitment to fundraising and standing in solidarity with the Palestinian people remains the same. »
In conclusion, he said: “They may own the arenas. But they don’t own the people who fill them. And they never will. FREE PALESTINE.”
Gn entert
