Macklemore claims US arenas are blocking his Free Palestine tour.
The 43-year-old star – who was dropped by Ed Sheeran’s touring company earlier this year after he chanted “Free Palestine” during two concerts at MetLife Stadium – recently performed his show in Dublin, Paris and London and had hoped to bring it to the US but claims that nine major US venues have turned him down.
He wrote on Instagram: “A lot of you have been asking about US dates for The Free Palestine benefit tour, and I wanted to give you an update. The shows in Dublin, Paris and London were three of the most beautiful I’ve ever been a part of.
“From the beginning, our plan was to bring this tour home to the US but after weeks of reaching out, nine major American arenas have turned us down.
“Once they found out these were my benefit shows for Palestine, those dates were suddenly off the table. The doors were closed. The conversations were all different, but the result was the same. The shows were not going to be allowed to happen in these venues.
“In over 20 years of touring, I’ve never experienced anything like this. But this is not an isolated incident. For decades, activists, poets, writers, musicians and entertainers who have stood in solidarity with the Palestinian people have faced consequences for doing so. Many have paid a far greater price than I have.
“At this point, I’m three years past giving two s***s about maintaining any relationships, business or personal with anyone that isn’t riding for a Free Palestine. I’d rather lose every opportunity in this industry than spend another day protecting people who value their business relationships with Israel more than they value Palestinian human life.
“There will be more shows for Palestine. We’ll keep working with other artists and organizers, conjuring where we left off in Europe. We’ll probably just take that s*** outside where it belonged in the first place. Our commitment to raising funds and standing in solidarity with the Palestinian people remains the same. There comes a point when the world changes, not because those in power give us permission, but because the people stop asking for it. We will build our own stages. They may own the arenas, but they do not own the people who fill them. And they never will.”
Madison Square Garden in New York was among the venues Macklemore claimed cut off talks about a tour stop but the venue has insisted he is “not an arena level act”.
A spokesperson for MSG Entertainment told Us Weekly: “We have some of the busiest venues in the world with extremely limited availability and he’s not an arena level act.”
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Author: Al Dente
Photo: © Markus Felix | PushingPixels (contact me)