Rosie O'Donnell blasted Ed Sheeran for removing Macklemore from his U.S. tour, accusing the singer of siding with a "billionaire elite" and "supporting genocide" over pro-Palestinian stage acts.
Comedian Rosie O'Donnell used an appearance on Ireland's "The Late Late Show" to attack Ed Sheeran after the singer's team dropped rapper Macklemore from the Loop Tour. Macklemore had repeatedly declared "Free Palestine" and performed the song "Hind's Hall" during shows at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey. Fox News reported O'Donnell's remarks and the fallout that followed.
Host Patrick Kielty raised the controversy involving Sheeran, Macklemore, and New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft. O'Donnell did not hold back. She framed Sheeran's decision as a moral failure rather than a venue and promoter choice.
O'Donnell said Sheeran would regret the move. She cast the drop as alignment with powerful interests instead of protesters.
"I think Ed Sheeran made a very bad mistake and that he will come to understand the ramifications of siding with a billionaire elite, in supporting genocide rather than the people who are saying, 'This is wrong. We will not stand for it. We are human beings and each human life matters and that's what's the most important thing.'"
She then turned on Kraft himself. The Patriots owner founded the Foundation to Combat Antisemitism and controls Gillette Stadium. O'Donnell labeled him part of a corrupt class.
"Well, he's part of the billionaire elite. Those are the most corrupt people in the United States right now. And they have sort of performed a coup on the American government. And it's very tragic."
Tour promoter Messina Touring Group said multiple venues informed them concerts could not proceed with Macklemore still on the bill. Macklemore alleged Kraft told Sheeran he would bar the rapper from Gillette Stadium and urged other owners to do the same. Kraft cited Macklemore's "broader history of antisemitic rhetoric and imagery." He stressed the decision was not meant to dismiss Palestinian suffering.
Kraft put the core point plainly. Standing with Palestinians and rejecting Hamas, antisemitism, and hate are not opposites.
"Standing with the Palestinian people and standing against Hamas, antisemitism and hate should not be mutually exclusive."
Sheeran rejected any claim he backs Palestinian suffering. At his first show after the dispute, in Philadelphia, he called the situation in Gaza catastrophic. He condemned Hamas' Oct. 7 attack while criticizing the scale of civilian harm. He pledged $2 million for humanitarian relief and asked Kraft to match it. Kraft agreed. Macklemore said he would give $1 million from tour earnings to Palestinian aid groups.
O'Donnell's long public record includes high-profile television friction, including the tension with Whoopi Goldberg that marked her earlier stretch on The View. The latest blast fits a pattern of sweeping political claims from the same celebrity lane.
Christian Toto, host of "Hollywood in Toto," told Fox News Digital that celebrities face a narrow script on the Israel-Palestinian conflict. He compared the dynamic to the entertainment industry's earlier Black Lives Matter conformity.
"There is only one acceptable answer for celebrities when it comes to the ongoing Israel/Palestinian conflict. Say 'Free Palestine' and nothing else. It's the new BLM, a contentious issue where celebrities know they'll gain approval within their circle by repeating that mantra. They also understand they won't be pressured to defend their point of view by the vast majority of entertainment reporters. It's a safe space for them."
Toto added that most working artists avoid alienating ticket buyers. High prices leave little room for soapbox risks. Actors often prioritize peer approval and future casting over audiences who pay the bills.
"Most artists know better than to alienate audiences with their political views. The Springsteens, Morellos and Macklemores remain the exception. Concert ticket prices are too high for most bands to get on their soapbox and risk dooming repeat business. Actors don't make the connection between their divisive words and audience reaction. They simply want to appease their fellow actors and make nice with potential directors and casting directors. So they read from the approved script."
Nick Fondacaro, associate editor at NewsBusters, answered O'Donnell's coup language and her warning to Sheeran. He noted her own wealth and the basic property rights at stake for a stadium owner.
"Are we surprised that an unabashed 9/11-truther took an irrational and unhinged position? It's irresponsible and incendiary to claim a coup has taken place in America, especially when political violence is on the rise. Given that people like Charlie Kirk and Brian Thompson have been killed by leftists for their political causes, Rosie's prediction that Sheeran will come to learn a lesson sounded like a warning or threat. It's hypocritical that a multimillionaire like Rosie things that Robert Kraft didn’t have the same rights as she and Macklemore. The stadium is his property, and he can decide who to allow in or not, just like they can bar Kraft from their multimillion-dollar mansions."
Fox News Digital sought comment from Kraft, Sheeran, and Macklemore and did not receive an immediate response. The same celebrity ecosystem that elevates voices like O'Donnell also features pay gaps and internal rivalries of the sort tracked in coverage of Whoopi Goldberg's earnings on The View.
O'Donnell cast a venue owner's decision and a promoter's lineup change as elite betrayal and "genocide" support. Kraft answered with a distinction between Palestinian civilians and antisemitic rhetoric. Sheeran put money toward relief while keeping the tour moving without Macklemore. Toto and Fondacaro described the industry incentive structure that rewards one chant and treats dissent as career risk.
Stadium owners and ticket buyers retain the right to set terms. Celebrities who treat that boundary as moral treason reveal more about their own politics than about the artists they lecture.
When the loudest voices demand total loyalty on a foreign war and call property decisions genocide, they leave ordinary fans and lawful venue operators carrying the real costs of the performance.