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PHILADELPHIA — Ed Sheeran was overcome with emotion as he apologized to fans during his return to the stage Saturday following backlash after Macklemore was dropped from his tour.
“I’m not surprised that this week’s criticism was about something much more important,” Sheeran said upon opening his show at Lincoln Financial Field. “I’ve had to take and make difficult decisions, and I am making mistakes. I’m so, so sorry. I don’t want to disappoint fans.”
He added, “Now, I want to address the question of where I stand in the situation in Israel and Palestine and whether this concert here tonight implies where I stand. I’ve tried in my career not to be a political commentator of any kind, because I want my music and shows to be about unity not division, about humanity not politics.
TAYLOR SWIFT QUIET AS FRIEND ED SHEERAN TAKES HEAT OVER MACKLEMORE’S ‘FREE PALESTINE’ CONCERT FIASCO
“But this is a humanitarian issue and I cannot hide how I feel about it anymore. What happened in Israel at a … music festival on Oct. 7 was horrific and compounded centuries of Jewish pain. What is happening in Gaza is catastrophic and unjustifiable and disproportionate.
“I’ve had to take and make difficult decisions, and I am making mistakes. I’m so, so sorry. I don’t want to disappoint fans.”
“My heart has been broken by the scale of devastation and loss of civilians’ lives, of children’s lives and the systemic justice we’re seeing unfold in the West Bank cannot be overlooked.”
He added, “I am already speaking to people across the spectrum to work out how to make a contribution that helps victims of these terrible times, and listening and learning because I do not know enough.”
During the show, Sheeran admitted he wasn’t so sure how the audience would react to his performance.
MACKLEMORE’S LONG HISTORY OF CONTROVERSY FROM GRAMMY WINS TO ‘FREE PALESTINE’ CONCERT REMARKS
“I didn’t know if I would have things thrown at me,” he said to a roaring applause. “Today is not the usual Loop show. I took the B stage out because I was afraid what might happen if I stood in the middle, and I will admit that. So the show’s a little bit different.”
“When my friends dropped out of this show, I was thinking, how am I going to keep the show the same, and how am I going to get musicians to stand on stage with me in a week where no one wants to stand on stage with me,” he noted before bringing out his touring violinist, Alicia Enstrom.
“I didn’t know if I would have things thrown at me.”
He told the crowd that he decided to carry on with the tour because “music is everything and brings people together.”
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Pro-Palestinian protesters descended upon Lincoln Financial Field waving Palestinian flags and chanting “Free Palestine,” one week after Macklemore was dropped from Sheeran’s tour.
WATCH: ED SHEERAN FANS DISCUSS ATTENDING MUSICIAN’S SHOW FOLLOWING MACKLEMORE BACKLASH
Macklemore, who’s full name is Ben Haggerty, was kicked off Sheeran’s Loop Tour following criticism from his “Free Palestine” messaging during his opening act at MetLife Stadium last weekend.
Sheeran first addressed Macklemore’s removal from his U.S. tour Tuesday, saying the rapper’s departure was ultimately a decision made by the concert promoter and venues — not by him.
The “Shape of You” singer said he was “appalled” by the conflict between Israel and Palestine and described the suffering on both sides as “a human tragedy,” according to a lengthy statement shared on Instagram after Macklemore accused Sheeran and tour organizers of sidelining him over his pro-Palestinian remarks.
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On Monday, Macklemore claimed that Sheeran told him Robert Kraft, the owner of the New England Patriots and Gillette Stadium, had rallied other stadium owners to oppose allowing the rapper to perform.
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The venues allegedly gave Sheeran an ultimatum: “If Macklemore stays on the tour, you will not be allowed to play in our venues.”
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