Ed Sheeran Faces Backlash, Loses Followers Over Israel-Palestine Stance

Ed Sheeran has experienced a significant drop in his Instagram following, losing nearly 500,000 followers in what he described as "one of the worst weeks of my life." The backlash stems from his decision to drop opening act Macklemore from his tour dates following the rapper's pro-Palestine statements.

On September 14, Macklemore announced he had been dropped from the tour after a week of discussions with Sheeran. Prior to this announcement, Sheeran's Instagram follower count stood at 47.6 million. Within 24 hours, it fell to 47.3 million. Data from Social Blade indicates a further decline of nearly 150,000 followers on September 15 alone, the day Sheeran addressed the situation publicly. An additional drop of over 98,000 followers occurred the following day. As of September 23, his follower count had decreased to 47.2 million, marking a loss of half a million followers in one week.

Following Macklemore's removal, Sheeran's other opening acts – Finneas, Lukas Graham, and Aaron Rowe – along with his backing band Beoga, announced they would leave the tour in solidarity with the rapper and Palestine. Reports suggest that while Sheeran lost followers, the artists who quit gained a combined 1.6 million.

During a concert in Philadelphia on Saturday, Sheeran addressed the crowd, stating, "The last week of my life has been one of the worst weeks of my life." He also expressed gratitude for the fans who attended, calling it "one of the weirdest days of my life" and "honestly the best show of my life."

Sheeran faced accusations of "bowing to the mob" after issuing an apology to fans at the start of his Philadelphia concert, reading from an autocue. He acknowledged the situation in Gaza as "catastrophic and unjustifiable" and described Hamas's October 7 attacks as "horrific." This marked a departure from his previous stance of keeping politics out of his shows.

Piers Morgan commented on Sheeran's statement, agreeing with his overview of the conflict but wishing he hadn't felt compelled to speak publicly, suggesting he "needs better advisors." Similar sentiments were echoed online, with some critics arguing that his PR team should be fired and that he should not have felt pressured to comment.

Sheeran explained that he decided to continue the tour after noticing an increase in ticket sales, telling the audience, "Everyone's telling me to cancel and I'm feeling all of my friends and family and people I know abandon me – and I look at the end of the week, and I see 50,000 people who haven't abandoned me."

Concertgoers outside the Philadelphia venue expressed a desire to enjoy the music, with one fan telling the BBC that the sentiment was a "determination to enjoy an evening of music while at the same time supporting freedom of speech." Another described Sheeran's speech as "very sincere."

In his prepared statement, Sheeran said he had always aimed for his music and shows to be about "unity and not division, about humanity and not politics." However, he felt compelled to speak out, calling the situation a "humanitarian issue." He detailed the "horrific" events of October 7, the "catastrophic and unjustifiable" situation in Gaza, and the "systemic injustice" in the West Bank.

Macklemore's comments were made during his performances at MetLife Stadium on September 4 and 5, where he introduced his song "Hind's Hall," a protest against Israel's military actions in Gaza. He was subsequently removed from the tour after stadium owner Robert Kraft accused him of sharing selective information.

Sheeran became emotional during his performance, noting he had "found out who his friends are." He apologized at the end of the show for the initial segment not being about music, acknowledging that families may not have purchased tickets to hear a political statement. Despite the turmoil, he vowed to continue performing, emphasizing the unifying power of his shows.

Concerns about potential negative reactions led Sheeran to alter his usual stage setup, explaining that he was unsure if objects might be thrown at him or if people would be angry. He ultimately brought out a new group of musicians, led by fiddler Alicia Enstrom, after his usual collaborators withdrew from the tour.