Ed Sheeran Postpones New England Performances Amid Nor’easter Threat
Ed Sheeran’s weekend concerts in Foxborough, Massachusetts, have been called off after a nor’easter bearing down on New England prompted organizers to cancel his Friday and Saturday shows at Gillette Stadium, about 22 miles southwest of Boston. Refunds will be issued to ticket holders.
Concert promoter Messina Touring said in a statement Friday that, given severe weather warnings across Boston and New England through the weekend and after consulting with local officials, the company made the difficult decision to cancel the Ed Sheeran concerts at Gillette Stadium, adding that fan, staff and crew safety was the top priority behind the call.
The storm is expected to bring strong winds, coastal flooding and heavy rain across much of the East Coast. The National Weather Service said gusts could reach 60 to 65 miles per hour on Cape Cod, Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket Friday night, with winds around 50 to 55 miles per hour expected near Boston.
The cancellation adds to a rocky stretch for Sheeran’s Loop Tour, which has already been disrupted after Macklemore was dropped from the lineup following pro-Palestinian comments he made onstage during a September 5 show in New Jersey, a decision that led several supporting acts to withdraw in solidarity. Speaking at a concert in Philadelphia the following Sunday, Sheeran said he wants his music and shows centered on unity and humanity rather than politics, while acknowledging that the October 7, 2023 attacks in Israel were horrific and describing the situation in Gaza as catastrophic and unjustifiable.
The decision to remove Macklemore came at the urging of Robert Kraft, owner of the New England Patriots and Gillette Stadium, who said in a statement that the move stemmed from the rapper’s recent comments and a broader history of antisemitic rhetoric and imagery. Sheeran has said he wasn’t the one responsible for cutting Macklemore from the tour, pointing instead to the tour’s promoter.
Macklemore said last week he was donating a million dollars to support Palestinian relief efforts and called on Kraft to match the gift. A spokesperson for Kraft said the billionaire and Sheeran had each agreed to donate two million dollars, though where that money will ultimately go hasn’t been specified.
As of last year, Sheeran, the Grammy-winning artist behind “Shape of You,” ranked as the third highest-earning concert act of the millennium, according to industry magazine Pollstar.
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