Macklemore revealed in a statement on Instagram that he and Ed Sheeran had a “painful disagreement” over his controversial "Free Palestine” speech at Met Life Stadium, before he was dropped as the opener on The Loop tour. Macklemore claimed Sheeran told him that Robert Kraft, the billionaire owner of Gillette Stadium, pressured him to remove the the rapper. In response Kraft, who is Jewish, said Macklemore’s speech spread ‘"divisiveness and hate," but extended an olive branch to "sit down" with Macklemore, whose real name is Ben Haggerty.