Ed Sheeran became emotional on stage Saturday night as he addressed the war in Gaza, telling concertgoers that he could no longer remain silent about the humanitarian crisis.
The British singer-songwriter delivered the remarks at Philadelphia’s Lincoln Financial Field during his first concert since controversy erupted over rapper Macklemore’s removal from his tour following Macklemore’s statements about Israel.
“I’ve never wanted to be an activist musician, but this put me in the middle of an important and passionate argument about freedom of speech and the most complex political issue on the planet,” Sheeran told the crowd.
Sheeran said he wanted to make his position clear while acknowledging the suffering caused by Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel.
“But this is a humanitarian issue. I cannot hide how I feel about it anymore,” he said. “What happened in Israel, and at the music festival on October 7th was horrific and compounded centuries of Jewish pain.”
Sheeran appeared to fight back tears before turning to the devastation in Gaza.
“What is happening in Gaza is catastrophic and unjustifiable and disproportionate,” he said.
The “Shape of You” singer also spoke about civilian casualties and developments in the West Bank.
“My heart has been broken by the scale of devastation and loss of civilian loss and loss of children’s lives,” Sheeran said. “And the systemic injustice we’re seeing unfolding [in] the West Bank cannot be overlooked.”
The remarks drew applause from the Philadelphia audience.
Sheeran then moved on with the concert, launching into his hit “Castle on the Hill.”
The emotional address marked an unusually direct political intervention from the 35-year-old musician, who stressed that he had never sought to become an activist through his music.
His comments came after a controversy involving Macklemore, whose outspoken criticism of Israel and support for Palestinians have repeatedly drawn attention during the Gaza war.
Sheeran’s remarks attempted to distinguish between his condemnation of the Oct. 7 attack and his criticism of Israel’s subsequent conduct in Gaza, framing his comments primarily around civilian suffering.
“I cannot hide how I feel about it anymore,” he told the crowd.
