Macklemore announces Dublin dates for ‘Free Palestine’ tour following Ed Sheeran controversy
The tour announcement comes after Macklemore was removed from the remaining dates he was due to play as a support act on Ed Sheeran's Loop Tour in the US
US rapper Macklemore has announced that he is bringing his newly launched Free Palestine Tour to Dublin next month.
The Grammy Award-winning artist will kick off the European leg of the tour at Dublin's 3Arena on Monday, October 26, before travelling to Paris on October 29 and London on October 30.
More dates, including shows in the United States, are expected to be announced in the coming weeks.
Macklemore said the concerts will see him joined by a number of artists and friends, with further details of those taking part still to be announced.
All proceeds from the concerts will go to organisations supporting Palestinians, including humanitarian, medical, educational and community organisations
The tour announcement comes after Macklemore was removed from the remaining dates he was due to play as a support act on Ed Sheeran's Loop Tour in the US.
The rapper had spoken in support of Palestinians while performing at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey earlier this month and introduced his protest song Hind's Hall by telling the crowd that one of the reasons he wanted to perform on the tour was to stand in stadiums and say "Free Palestine".
Tour promoter Messina Touring Group subsequently said venues on the upcoming US leg would not allow concerts to go ahead with Macklemore on the line-up.
Sheeran later said the decision to remove the rapper had been made by the promoter after venues indicated they would pull the shows if Macklemore remained.
Irish acts Aaron Rowe and Beoga, along with Finneas and Lukas Graham, later withdrew from upcoming dates on Sheeran's tour.
Announcing his own tour on Thursday, Macklemore joked that his "schedule freed up a bit" and said he had spent the past week contacting artists who had used their platforms to express solidarity with Palestinians.
He said many of the details were still being worked out because of how quickly the shows had come together.
The Dublin concert will take place at the 3Arena on October 26, with doors opening at 6.30pm. Tickets are priced at €67.65 and €77.20, subject to a Ticketmaster service charge.
An artist presale begins on Monday, September 28 at 10am, while tickets go on general sale at 10am on Wednesday, September 30.