Radio station removes Ed Sheeran from airwaves following Macklemore dispute

The latest blow for Sheeran

Sheeran has had a week to forget in comparison to his lofty career, seeing all his support acts drop out of his tour and global condemnation from fellow artists, celebrities and the public alike.

Earlier this week, US rapper Macklemore was removed as a support act for expressing solidarity with Palestinians on stage at a concert at the Met Life at the start of September.

Macklemore had made several onstage statements in support of Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank and called for a “free Palestine.”

In a statement shared on Instagram, Macklemore said he was dropped from the tour after Robert Kraft — the multi-billionaire owner of the New England Patriots and Gillette Stadium – threatened to ban Sheeran from playing at his venue if the rapper remained on the tour.

Sheeran said in a statement that he is not “complicit” in the outcome but confirmed venue owners had threatened to pull the tour entirely if Macklemore wasn’t dropped from the bill.

The English singer defended himself against the backlash to Macklemore’s removal from the tour, but refused to publicly speak out about the situation in Palestine.

Sheeran’s decision to stay neutral on the situation in Gaza and Palestine sparked fury, and since then all remaining support acts have withdrawn from his tour in solidarity with Macklemore and Palestine.

Now, a radio station in Ireland has completely dropped Sheeran from their playlist.

Irish radio station Classic Hits Radio announced on Thursday that it is removing Ed Sheeran's music from its playlist "for the foreseeable future", following feedback from listeners.

Dave Kelly, Group Programme Director at Bay Broadcasting, said the move had been "carefully considered" and was "not intended as a personal judgement on Ed Sheeran".

Ed Sheeran. Image: Getty.

"We acknowledge his own explanation of the circumstances surrounding recent events," he said.

"As an independent Irish-owned radio station, however, we believe it is important to listen to our audience and to stand alongside Irish artists who have made what is undoubtedly a significant professional decision based on their own convictions."

He added: "Ultimately, our position is a simple one. We believe in peace, humanity and respect, and in the right of people and artists to express and act upon their sincerely held views."