Ed Sheeran has lost airtime in Ireland as the backlash surrounding Macklemore’s removal from his stadium tour continues to spread.
Classic Hits Radio has revealed that Sheeran’s songs will disappear from its rotation for the “foreseeable future” after the station heard from listeners upset over the tour controversy. The decision will remain under review.
“Our decision to remove Ed Sheeran’s music from the Classic Hits Radio playlist has been carefully considered,” Bay Broadcasting executive Dave Kelly said.
Ed Sheeran really said, “If everyone else is leaving, I might as well make it interesting.”
— QouteRoast (@QouteRoast) September 17, 2026
When the opening acts are cancelled and your own band quits, you know the tour has entered a completely different level of chaos.
But beyond the joke, when the people who are supposed…
Kelly stressed that the station was not passing “a personal judgment” on Sheeran, but said it wanted to respect listener sentiment and Irish performers who had stepped away from the tour.
The uproar traces back to Macklemore’s September 4 and 5 appearances at MetLife Stadium, where he spoke in support of Palestinians and performed his protest song “Hind’s Hall.” The tour’s promoter later confirmed Macklemore would not appear on the remaining U.S. dates after venues objected to his participation.
Sheeran rejected the idea that he made that call himself.
“The venue’s and the promoter’s decision was final,” he wrote. “Macklemore coming off tour was the promoter’s decision, it was not mine.”
Wanting all humans to be treated equal should never be controversial. pic.twitter.com/BOJ9xMoIZn
— Macklemore (@macklemore) September 7, 2026
The shakeup did not stop there. Other supporting performers subsequently exited the tour, including Aaron Rowe and Beoga.
Sheeran, meanwhile, said he had spent the week trying to find common ground, adding, “I know who I am, both as a person and as an artist.”