In one serious case of ironic timing, a contest has launched that invites hopeful musicians to apply for the chance to open for Ed Sheeran on his embattled Loop tour.
The British singer-songwriter, 35, is currently embroiled in major controversy after US rapper Macklemore was kicked off the tour as his support act, over his on-stage comments in support of Palestine.
While Sheeran has insisted the decision came from the tour promoter, not him – and that he is “not complicit” – he has been criticised for his apolitical stance, while his remaining support acts have also withdrawn in solidarity with Macklemore.
On Monday (14 September), the same day Macklemore was dropped, Guitar Center launched a new “Open for Legends” competition for fans to support Sheeran at his concert in Mexico City on 11 December.
The contest is open to any musician over 18 with performance experience and a valid US passport. Fans can enter by submitting videos of themselves to the Guitar Center website, with the public encouraged to vote for their favourites before a panel of judges selects 10 finalists – with one winner chosen.
However, Entertainment Weekly reports that the website has been flooded with memes and non-musical videos displaying support for Palestine and contempt for Sheeran, with just a handful of the videos featuring sincere entries to open for the singer-songwriter.
One user apparently captioned a video of a fiery car accident with links to organisations providing aid in Palestine, while another submitted the entire music video for Macklemore’s hit song “Thrift Shop”.
Another user reportedly featured a video of a man farting on his roommate’s doorknob, and captioned it: “Me when I’m not complicit.”
At the time of writing, Guitar Center appeared to have removed these videos from its site, leaving behind just the sincere entries.
After Macklemore was dropped from the tour, Sheeran’s remaining support acts Finneas, Lukas Graham and Aaron Rowe, as well as his tour band, Irish group Beoga, announced their decision to pull out of their scheduled shows.
Sheeran has also been called out by fellow celebrities, while others, such as singer-songwriter Billy Bragg, said he should cancel the tour rather than bend to the whim of billionaires.
He was referring to Robert Kraft, billionaire sports owner of the Gillette Stadium where Sheeran is due to play on 25 and 26 September, who confirmed this week that he barred Macklemore from the singer’s shows, stating the venue was committed to “providing a welcoming environment for all guests and ensuring that all events held at our venue do not provide a platform for hate speech”.
Macklemore shared a statement in which he said any controversy was worthwhile if it helped raise awareness of the situation in Palestine.
“I didn’t need 10 shows from Ed. I needed two,” he said. “Two chances to stand in front of 90,000 people and say the words that somehow became too dangerous to say. Free Palestine. But if those words cost me the stage, while turning the conversation back to Palestine, then it was the most successful tour I’ve ever been on.”
He has also pledged to donate the entire $1m of his net earnings from Sheeran’s tour to six organisations working to support the Palestinian people.
Kraft said he and Sheeran would also be donating $2m each towards humanitarian relief for Palestinians, following a challenge from the rapper.
“I have my personal views on this devastating conflict,” Sheeran said in his statement earlier this week. “Just because I choose to not speak publicly, it doesn’t mean I don’t have them, and it doesn’t mean I don’t care. Nor does it mean I don’t support causes in my own, personal way.”
He added: “I choose to use my fame and platform to be a place of safety and sanctuary, to maintain diplomacy and keep conversations open, not closed. If we only focus on shouting the loudest, nothing will ever change. There are different approaches to being an advocate for change.”
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