Billy Bragg says “if I was Ed Sheeran, I’d swallow my pride and cancel the tour” to avoid “tarnishing career” and “becoming a pariah”

Billy Bragg has shared his stance on the backlash facing Ed Sheeran following Macklemore being dropped from his tour due to pro-Palestine comments. Earlier this week, the ‘Thrift Shop’ rapper made headlines over his impassioned “free Palestine” speech made while opening for Sheeran at New Jersey’s Gillette Stadium. The speech prompted calls for Macklemore’s removal from figures like Pink and the Israeli American Council. Macklemore was then dropped from the tour, with Gillette Stadium owner Robert Kraft later confirming that he found Macklemore’s speech “deeply offensive and hurtful to the Jewish community”, resulting in his dismissal. Sheeran would later speak out about the situation, saying he was “not complicit” and that he was “appalled by the conflict between Israel and Palestine” and sees the “suffering and pain caused on both sides” as a “tragedy”. His response, however, has sparked some backlash, with all of his support acts – including Finneas, Lukas Graham and Beoga – all pulling out of the tour in solidarity with Macklemore and the people of Palestine, as well as Sheeran’s backing band. Recent support acts BIIRD and Myles Smith also came out in support of the rapper, and...