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Shattered Ed Sheeran claims family ‘abandoned’ him as Macklemore controversy rages on

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Cite

Bueno, A. (2026, September 20). Shattered Ed Sheeran claims family ‘abandoned’ him as Macklemore controversy rages on. New York Post. https://pagesix.com/2026/09/20/celebrity-news/ed-sheeran-claims-family-abandoned-him-over-macklemore-controversy/

Dated when The Aporia collected the article, usually within hours of publication. Check the original for its exact date and byline.

New York Post · collected 2026-09-20 · by Antoinette Bueno

Quick Summary

Ed Sheeran addressed controversy during a concert in Philadelphia after Macklemore was removed from his Loop Tour due to pro-Palestine comments. Sheeran broke down onstage, revealing that many friends and family members had distanced themselves amid the backlash. He expressed gratitude towards supportive fans who attended the show despite criticism, emphasizing his commitment to performing for them. The article highlights Sheeran's emotional response and security concerns at the event, contrasting with negative feedback from some of his relatives.
Written by AI on 2026-09-21, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

Macklemore was dropped from Ed Sheeran’s US tour after making pro-Palestinian comments at concerts. The rapper was removed following his chants of “Free Palestine” and criticism of Israel's actions as apartheid and genocide during performances in New Jersey. Promoters for the tour, Messina Touring Group, confirmed they received notifications from American venues that Macklemore would not be allowed to perform, potentially resulting in tour cancellation. Robert Kraft, owner of Gillette Stadium where Sheeran was scheduled to play, reportedly pressured Sheeran over Macklemore’s involvement. In response, Charlotte Church criticized Ed Sheeran during a concert for prioritizing profits over addressing the Gaza conflict.

Written for “Macklemore Dropped From Ed Sheeran Tour” on 2026-11-01, grounded in this article and the 120 other(s) covering the same event.

Story

📰 Macklemore Dropped From Ed Sheeran Tour
Entertainment · 121 article(s) covering the same event. Compare every outlet's account →

Compared with similar articles

This article reads unscored and hedges 3% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.
Evening Standard
Hedges 3 of 19 claims Outlet record 65/100
Evening Standard
Hedges 0 of 32 claims Outlet record 65/100
Evening Standard
Hedges 0 of 36 claims Outlet record 65/100
ABC News (US)
Hedges 0 of 21 claims Outlet record 70/100
Evening Standard
Hedges 0 of 35 claims Outlet record 65/100
Evening Standard
Hedges 0 of 30 claims Outlet record 65/100
Evening Standard
Hedges 0 of 30 claims Outlet record 65/100
New York Post
Hedges 1 of 17 claims Outlet record 66/100
National Post
⚖️ Leans strongly left Hedges 2 of 38 claims Outlet record 60/100
“The articles describe related events but different moments of the ongoing controversy and its emotional impact on Ed Sheeran rather than the same specific incident.”
How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
36
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
3%
1 of 36 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
not political
takes no side on a contested political question
Publisher signals
66/100
New York Post's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
121
Entertainment
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
Analyzed 2026-09-21 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

New York Post · 15783 article(s) · 35 correction(s) detected
Running correction rate · 35 correction(s)

Who wrote this

Antoinette Bueno
73 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
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🔮 “The soldiers would then punch holes throughout my body when they couldn’t find an enemy.”
Also by Antoinette Bueno
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 73 articles by Antoinette Bueno →

Topics

America Instagram Page Six Daily Philadelphia

Subjects

Macklemore PERSON · 4× Kraft ORG · 3× Sheeran PERSON · 3× Jethro PERSON · 2× America GPE · 1× Ed Sheeran PERSON · 1× Instagram ORG · 1× Jethro Sheeran PERSON · 1× Page Six Daily ORG · 1× Philadelphia GPE · 1×

Narrative

The devastated musician broke down in tears and sat cross-legged onstage at one point during his concert at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia Saturday night, reflecting on the week in which all his opening acts quit — including his own backing band — in solidarity with Macklemore. “In these situations you really find out who your friends are.
framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-09-21
🔮 “People will say what they want, but I am doing this for you.

Claims (36 extracted, 1 hedged)

Ed Sheeran said he’s lost family and close friends after igniting controversy due to Macklemore getting kicked off his Loop Tour due to the rapper’s pro-Palestine comments. asserted
Macklemore → say → comments
The devastated musician broke down in tears and sat cross-legged onstage at one point during his concert at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia Saturday night, reflecting on the week in which all his opening acts quit — including his own backing band — in solidarity with Macklemore. “In these situations you really find out who your friends are. asserted
friends → break → situations
It’s been a weird week,” he told the crowd in video captured by a fan. asserted
he → tell → fan
“It happened very quickly. asserted
It → happen → ?
At the same time, I had so many people telling me to cancel this tour and so many people I’ve known for years and years and years they’re kind of backing away.” asserted
they → have → years
“In the back of my mind, I saw the ticket sales for this gig and I didn’t see cancellations, I saw people buying tickets for this gig,” he continued as the crowd started to cheer. asserted
crowd → see → gig
“Everyone’s telling me to cancel and I’m feeling all of my friends and family and people I know abandon me.” asserted
I → tell → me
But the “Thinking Out Loud” singer said he was performing for his fans. asserted
he → think → fans
“I look at the end of the week and I see 50,000 people who haven’t abandoned me,” he noted. asserted
he → look → me
“People will say what they want, but I am doing this for you. asserted
I → say → you
I love you. asserted
I → love → you
I love this.” asserted
I → love → this
He called the concert the best show of his life, but called the past week one of the worst weeks he’d experienced. asserted
he → call → weeks
He later cried as he said that he felt so much love from the audience, after he was initially worried about his safety and that people would boo him. asserted
people → cry → him
“The world is a scary place right now, America is a scary place right now,” he said, before pointing to the audience and noting, “This gives hope.” asserted
This → say → hope
Ahead of the show, Sheeran, 35, took drastic security measures because he feared people would throw things at him onstage. asserted
people → take → him
“At this point in the show, to be honest, I usually go out on the B stage,” he said, asserted
he → go → stage
“I apologize that today is not the usual Loop show,” he continued. asserted
he → apologize → ?
“I took the B stage out because was afraid of what might happen if I stood in the middle. uncertain
I → take → middle
And I will admit that.” asserted
I → admit → that
Although the Grammy-winner didn’t name the family who abandoned him, his cousin Jethro Sheeran publicly blasted him online Thursday. asserted
cousin → name → him
“Finally it’s all coming out! asserted
it → come → ?
I’m ashamed of my cousin Ed he’s done. asserted
he → ’m → cousin
Finally the world and all his fans see through him. asserted
world → see → him
He’s not a good person, I don’t like his music so I can’t say he’s even a good artist,” Jethro posted on Instagram. asserted
Jethro → ’ → Instagram
He also wrote, “He’s honestly a selfish individual with malicious, cunning ways… asserted
He → write → ways
I’m his first blood cousin and he screwed me over, made fun of my mental health and mental health in general.” asserted
he → ’m → health
Despite Macklemore previously saying that Ed was pressured into dropping him from his tour by stadium owners, Jethro said he believes Ed made the decision himself, calling his cousin “shady” and a “coward.” asserted
Ed → say → cousin
“In my opinion he’s a bad human. asserted
he → ’ → opinion
Just my opinion from my experiences,” he wrote. asserted
he → write → experiences
Meanwhile, Macklemore, 43, has donated all the money he says he made from the Loop tour before getting dropped — $1 million — to Palestinian relief efforts. asserted
he → donate → efforts
He called on Robert Kraft, the billionaire owner of the New England Patriots and Kraft Group, to match his donation. asserted
He → call → donation
Kraft, who owns Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachasetts, and was one of the stadium owners who refused to let the “Thrift Shop” rapper perform after his “Free Palestine” speech, donated $2 million after he said Sheeran asked him to. asserted
Sheeran → own → him
In a statement about the massive donation, Kraft, 85, insisted that he’s dedicated his life to trying to help people come together and believes that “all lives are worth protecting.” asserted
lives → insist → life
Conversation Your voice matters. asserted
voice → matter → ?
Discussions are moderated for civility. asserted
Discussions → moderate → civility
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