Macklemore launched his Free Palestine Tour on Monday night in Dublin, a few weeks after he was taken off Ed Sheeran's Loop Tour for sharing a "free Palestine" message during his opening sets.
The sold-out show at Dublin's 3Arena was a benefit concert, and organizers chose not to announce the lineup in advance. Performers included Hozier, Kneecap, Palestinian-American DJ and producer DJ Habibeats, Palestinian singer-songwriter Lina Makoul and M1 of the rap duo Dead Prez. Boega, the backing band that left Sheeran's tour in solidarity with Macklemore, also appeared on the bill.
The Dublin date was the first of three sold-out shows. The series moves to Paris' Accor Arena on Oct. 29 and then to London's OVO Arena Wembley on Oct. 30.
Irish actor Liam Cunningham, activist and psychotherapist Nadia Greenspan, and artist and organizer Samir Eskanda spoke as special guests. "Enjoying tonight does not mean forgetting about the suffering in Gaza," Cunningham said onstage, according to published reports. "It means celebrating the humanity and life that Palestinians have fought so hard to protect."
All proceeds will go to organizations supporting Palestine and the Palestinian movement. A press release said the groups represent a broad range of work, from providing medical supplies, food and humanitarian assistance to advancing education, community support, advocacy and policy change among countries it described as complicit. It said the series centers on Palestinian families, children, healthcare workers, students, artists and communities affected by what it called the ongoing genocide in Gaza.
Macklemore was dropped from Sheeran's tour last month after his pro-Palestine speeches drew headlines. Messina Touring Group, Sheeran's longtime promoter, said venues on the upcoming U.S. dates had notified it that they would not allow a concert with Macklemore on the lineup. That, the promoter said, would lead to the tour's cancellation and affect hundreds of thousands of fans. "After discussions with stakeholders, Macklemore will not be performing on the remaining support dates," it said.
Sheeran later addressed the matter onstage, saying he had never wanted to be an activist musician but that the situation had put him in the middle of a passionate argument about freedom of speech. He said his concerts have always been a safe space for everyone and that honoring his commitment to fans was essential, which is why he was continuing the tour on his own. He also said he was "deeply worried about the idea that venues pre-approve content for performance," adding that it "should never happen in the free world."
Announcing his own tour on Instagram, Macklemore wrote that the past few weeks showed that something has shifted over the last three years. He pointed to a "collective awakening around Palestinian liberation" and said that "being apolitical during a genocide doesn't work anymore." He added that people are asking artists to use the stage for more than entertainment and to push back when calls for a free Palestine are met with attempts to silence them.
