Macklemore Says He Will Donate $1m Ed Sheeran Tour Salary to Palestinian Aid Groups

Macklemore said he will donate the $1m salary he received as an opening act on Ed Sheeran's Loop tour to organizations working with Palestinian people and providing relief in Gaza, according to the Guardian. The announcement comes after the rapper was dropped from the tour following backlash to onstage comments he made in support of Palestine.

The Guardian reported that Macklemore also publicly challenged Robert Kraft, the billionaire owner of the New England Patriots and a prominent donor to Israel, to match his donation. Kraft had refused to allow Macklemore to perform at his Gillette Stadium outside Boston, according to the report.

In response to the challenge, Kraft said that he and Sheeran would together give $2m to "aid in the region," the Guardian said, without providing further detail on how the funds would be distributed or which organizations would receive them.

The circumstances surrounding Macklemore's removal from the Loop tour, including the specific comments that prompted the backlash, were not detailed in the available reporting. The Guardian's account did not specify which relief organizations would receive Macklemore's donation.

Neither Sheeran nor representatives for Kraft or Macklemore have provided additional public comment beyond the statements cited in the report.