On Sept. 14, American rapper Macklemore was dropped as an opening act from British singer Ed Sheeran’s U.S. tour after he made a pro-Palestinian statement during a concert. This decision was made by Robert Kraft, the owner of Gillette Stadium, where Ed Sheeran and other partnered artists were scheduled to perform.
Kraft, along with other stadium owners and tour promoters, stated that Macklemore was dropped from the tour and barred from their venues because they viewed his statement as antisemitic hate speech. This caused much tension among Ed Sheeran, his fans, and other artists who were supposed to perform with him. Irish singer-songwriter Aaron Rowe, Danish band Lukas Graham, American singer-songwriter Finneas, and Irish folk band Beoga dropped out of the U.S. tour in solidarity with Macklemore.
Most recently, Macklemore posted on Instagram, stating that nine major U.S. arenas have refused to host his Free Palestine fundraising tour, calling out “intimidation, manipulation and suppression tactics.” He said that other venues in the New York tri-state area, including UBS arean and Prudential Center turned him down, as well as Los Angeles’ Intuit Dome and Kia Forum, San Francisco’s Chase Center and Seattle’s Climate Pledge arena. In the post, Macklemore said, “By mid-September, we received available dates at these arenas through the end of the year. But once they found out these were my benefit shows for Palestine, those dates were suddenly off the table,” he said. “The doors were closed. The conversations were all different, but the result was the same. The shows were not going to be allowed to happen in these venues.”
This continued controversy caught the attention of the public, raising divided opinions about censorship and whether venues should be able to pre-approve artists based on political opinions. This situation could also raise questions about Andrews University’s concert venue, the Howard Performing Arts Center (HPAC), and its policies for selecting performers. For example, if students express that they don’t want an artist to be invited to campus, how would the HPAC respond?
Lynnetta Hamstra, the manager of the HPAC, said that they would take students’ concerns seriously and make an effort to “understand the reasons behind them.” She added, “If students have specific concerns about an artist, we would listen to their perspective and consider any relevant information they bring forward as part of our overall evaluation.” While the HPAC’s management is the primary voice in selecting performers, a significant part of the selection process for artists begins with “Listening to our audience and understanding what they are interested in seeing and hearing.” Hamstra emphasized that the HPAC looks for performers and programs that “appeal to our community, while also offering high-quality and meaningful artistic experience.”
Hamstra also understands that students and community members may “have different perspectives and levels of comfort with different artists.” While she values concerns, she also pointed out that attendance is also an “individual choice. Students and other members of the community can decide for themselves whether a particular performance is one they would like to attend,” Hamstra said. Ultimately, the HPAC’s responsibility is to make “thoughtful and well-informed programming decisions” all while providing an environment where the arts can be appreciated professionally and respectfully.
In addition to understanding the interests of students and community members, the HPAC has the responsibility to consider the values of Andrews University and the Seventh-day Adventist Church’s guidelines regarding entertainment and programming. “When considering artists and performances, we look for programming that is consistent with those principles and contributes positively to the University community. We are especially encouraged to present performances that are spiritually inspiring, educational, professional or family-oriented,” she stated.
Many factors go into the HPAC’s decision not to select an artist, but the HPAC believes that, unlike the Macklemore/Sheeran situation, it is important to “respect the privacy” of the artists and whoever is involved, as well as to not disclose unnecessary details to the public.
While some comparisons could be drawn between the policies of the HPAC and the decisions that went into dropping Macklemore from Ed Sheeran’s tour, Hamstra’s statements demonstrate the care that goes into securing artists and entertainers to perform for Andrews’ students and the members of the surrounding community.
The Student Movement is the official student newspaper of Andrews University. Opinions expressed in the Student Movement are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the editors, Andrews University or the Seventh-day Adventist church.