Kraft and Sheeran Pledge $4M After Macklemore Challenge
Kraft and Sheeran Pledge $4M After Macklemore Challenge
The News
Rapper Macklemore said Tuesday he will donate the $1 million in net earnings he made opening for Ed Sheeran's Loop Tour to organizations that support the Palestinian people — and challenged New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft to match him.
Kraft answered within hours, and went further: TMZ reported the billionaire is doubling the gift to $2 million. Variety reported that Sheeran is also giving $2 million, putting the combined pledge at $4 million.
Kraft, who owns Gillette Stadium, had threatened a venue boycott against the tour over Macklemore's presence on it.
Timeline
Macklemore announces he will donate $1 million in net earnings from his run as Sheeran's supporting act to organizations serving Palestinians in Gaza, and invites Kraft to match the gift, per Deadline and The Washington Times.
Kraft responds to the challenge, Rolling Stone reported. TMZ reported he is doubling Macklemore's figure rather than matching it.
Variety reports Sheeran and Kraft are each donating $2 million toward the humanitarian crisis, though it is unclear which organizations will receive the money.
Reactions
CNN framed the turn as a truce between "canceled and canceler," with a stadium fight over one opening act converting into humanitarian donations from both sides.
Deadline reported Macklemore's pledge as a direct invitation to Kraft — the billionaire who had threatened to shut the tour out of his venue — to put the same money behind Palestinian relief.
Coverage crossed the spectrum quickly, from Rolling Stone and Variety on the left of the dial to The Washington Times on the right, each leading with the same core fact: the challenge was issued, and it was taken.
What's Next
The open question is where the money lands. Variety reported it is unclear which groups will receive the Kraft and Sheeran donations, and none of the sources named the organizations Macklemore selected.
Also unresolved is Kraft's threatened boycott of the tour at his venue, which the reports do not say has been withdrawn.
More
The dispute began on Sheeran's Loop Tour, where Macklemore served as a supporting act. The $1 million Macklemore pledged is described in the reporting as his net earnings from those opening slots — not a gift out of unrelated funds.
Poll
Did Robert Kraft handle the challenge the right way?
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