Macklemore says nine US arenas turned down his Free Palestine benefit tour after initially offering dates. He alleges the change followed disclosure of the concerts’ purpose. Madison Square Garden disputes his account, citing limited availability and his suitability for arena-scale shows. The dispute follows benefit performances in Dublin, Paris and London; no replacement US itinerary was announced.
US rapper Macklemore says nine arenas rejected proposed US dates for his Free Palestine benefit tour. In a November 6 Instagram statement, he alleged that dates offered earlier became unavailable when the venues learned the shows would benefit Palestine. Macklemore made the statement after benefit performances in Dublin, Paris and London. The claimed connection between the refusals and the concerts’ purpose is Macklemore’s allegation.[1], [2]
Madison Square Garden’s representative offered a different explanation, describing busy venues with extremely limited availability and disputing the artist’s suitability for arena-scale shows. Representatives of the other eight venues had not responded when the coverage appeared. The two accounts therefore give different reasons for the failure to secure the proposed performances.[1], [2]
The venues Macklemore named include Prudential Center in New Jersey, Barclays Center in Brooklyn, UBS Arena in the New York area, Los Angeles’s Intuit Dome, Kia Forum and Crypto.com Arena, San Francisco’s Chase Center and Seattle’s Climate Pledge Arena, as well as Madison Square Garden.[2]
Macklemore said he intended to keep working with other artists and organisers on further benefit performances, including the possibility of outdoor events. He described the dispute as unlike anything he had encountered in more than twenty years of touring. His announcement contained no replacement US itinerary, venue agreement or confirmed opening date.[1]
