Macklemore says nine US arenas rejected his ‘Free Palestine’ tour: “We will build our own stages”

Macklemore has claimed nine American arenas refused to host his ‘Free Palestine’ tour, accusing venue owners of attempting to silence his support for Palestinians.

1. Morfydd Clark on playing Cynthia Lennon in new Beatles biopics and her importance to John’s “genius”.
2. Why are veteran acts turning their backs on touring – and what hope is there for new artists.
3. Royal Blood – ‘Dead Company’ review: Brighton riff lords flex their massive muscles.

Conheça Solana, a estrela technicolour ‘YoruPop’ que está trilhando seu próprio som.

However, he said his team had been turned away by nine venues, despite initially having being offered available dates before the end of the year.

He named New York’s Madison Square Garden, Newark’s Prudential Center, Brooklyn’s Barclays Center, Long Island’s UBS Arena, Los Angeles venues Intuit Dome, Kia Forum and Crypto.com Arena, San Francisco’s Chase Center and Seattle’s Climate Pledge Arena.

He added: “In over twenty years of touring, I’ve never experienced anything like this.”.

Madison Square Garden já respondeu às alegações, contestando a sugestão de que sua decisão foi motivada politicamente.

An MSG Entertainment spokesperson told TMZ: “We have some of the busiest venues in the world with extremely limited availability and he’s not an arena level act.”.

In his statement, Macklemore argued that the difficulties he had encountered were part of a wider pattern of pressure against performers who publicly support Palestinians.

He continued: “But the intimidation, manipulation and suppression I experienced are part of how those in power keep entertainers quiet. It’s their main tactic to keep us in line.

Shut up and dribble, or you will be punished.”.

O rapper continuou a criticar os proprietários abastados de locais e seus relacionamentos comerciais com Israel, argumentando que o poder financeiro não deveria determinar quais causas políticas os artistas podem apoiar.

Ele acrescentou: “Para esses proprietários, as palavras Free Palestine representam uma ameaça. Não porque elas colocam em risco alguém, mas porque essas palavras desafiam os sistemas de poder sobre os quais construíram suas fortunas.”.

Macklemore said he remained committed to organising further benefit concerts, even if that meant abandoning plans to perform at conventional arenas.

He concluded: “We will build our own stages. They may own the arenas. But they do not own the people who fill them. And they never will.”.

The latest dispute follows Macklemore’s removal from Ed Sheeran’s US ‘Loop Tour’ in September, after he made speeches in support of Palestinians during concerts at New Jersey’s MetLife Stadium.

O rapper enfrentou críticas do bilionário Robert Kraft, dono do Gillette Stadium, que disse que não permitiria que Macklemore se apresentasse no local devido a preocupações com a mensagem de seu conjunto.

Sheeran subsequently said the decision to remove Macklemore was made by promoters and venue owners, rather than himself, adding that he had attempted to find a resolution.

The controversy also prompted several support acts, including Finneas, Beoga and Lukas Graham, to withdraw from Sheeran’s tour in solidarity with Macklemore.

Ele então lançou a ‘Free Palestine Tour’, realizando o concerto de abertura em Dublin em 26 de outubro ao lado de Hozier e Kneecap.

The tour subsequently visited Paris, where Aurora, Pomme and Portugal. The Man were among the performers, before concluding in London with appearances from Greta Thunberg, Paloma Faith and Nemahsis.

The world's defining voice in music and pop culture: breaking what's new and what's next since 1952.

Ao comprar via links afiliados no NME.com, você pode contribuir para o nosso site por meio de comissões. Saiba mais.

NME Networks, a part of Caldecott Music Group. All rights reserved.