Ed Sheeran forced to cancel shows at the centre of Macklemore controversy

Ed Sheeran’s Loop Tour shows at Gillette Stadium in Massachusetts – the very shows at the centre of the Macklemore controversy – have been cancelled.

While the rapper’s removal as support act was at the insistence of stadium owner Robert Kraft, the cancellation of the shows has nothing to do with alleged “hate speech” or censorship of any kind and everything to do with mother nature.

A massive storm heading for New England, in the north-eastern corner of the US, made the Friday and Saturday concerts untenable, with organisers officially pulling the plug on Friday morning (Saturday morning AEST).

“Due to the severe weather warnings in place in Boston and across New England throughout the weekend and following consultation with local officials, we have made the difficult decision to cancel the Ed Sheeran concerts at Gillette Stadium,” promoters said in a statement issued on social media.

“The decision was made with the safety of fans, staff and everyone involved in the shows as the top priority.”

Stadium and tour managers had been monitoring the weather all week but made the 11th hour call, with the nor’easter set to lash the region with up to 50 millimetres of rain and wind gusts of up to 90 km/h.

Tickets will be refunded after “the decision was made with the safety of fans, staff and everyone involved in the shows as the top priority”.

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The confirmation comes just hours after speculation shows may not go ahead after setting up of the stage was halted on Thursday.

Ironically, it were these shows that started the controversial saga that left many of the English singer’s fans demanding refunds, after American rapper Macklemore was dropped from the tour.

Kraft refused to let Macklemore perform inside his stadium and rallied other venue owners to do the same, saying the 43-year-old’s two-minute speech at New Jersey’s MetLife Stadium on September 4 was tantamount to “hate speech”.

Macklemore told the crowd that being able to say “free Palestine” in stadiums was a big part of why he joined Sheeran’s tour.

He added that he wanted people to say the words loudly so the people of Gaza and “the occupied West Bank” would know “we have not forgotten about them”.

He also performed his protest song, Hind’s Hall.

The performance led to the Israeli-American Council launching a petition to have the American rapper dropped from his eight remaining shows on the tour.

Jewish billionaire Kraft, who also owns the New England Patriots NFL team, effectively told Sheeran that if Macklemore stayed on the tour, the 35-year-old headliner wouldn’t be welcome to perform at Gillette Stadium, leading to the rapper being dropped.

Kraft defended his decision, saying the stadium has a commitment to “ensuring that all events held at our venue do not provide a platform for hate speech”.

He added that “recent actions, material shared from the stage during Ed Sheeran’s shows in New Jersey ... we believe has been deeply offensive and hurtful to the Jewish community” and added that a “line has been crossed”.

However, Sheeran’s other support acts – including Finneas (aka Billie Eillish’s brother), Danish pop band Lukas Graham and Irish acts Aaron Rowe and Beoga – decried the censorship and dropped out of the tour in solidarity with Macklemore.

At the time of Macklemore being dropped from the Loop Tour, Sheeran pointed out the rapper’s contract was with promoters and not the musician directly.

“Macklemore coming off tour was the promoter’s decision, it was not mine,” Sheeran told fans in a lengthy statement online.

“Macklemore’s contract for the tour was with the promoter, not me.”

Macklemore empathised for the position his friend and fellow musician had been put in, but hit back at Sheeran for not taking a stand regardless of the cost to him.

As a result of how the issue - and Sheeran’s attempt to claim an apolitical stance - played out, Sheeran has lost fans, ticket sales, radio airplay and social media followers, and the fallout continues more than two weeks on.

Now, it’s all been for shows that won’t go ahead regardless.