‘This is all about Macklemore’s bottom line, baby’: Comedian rips rapper’s Palestine speech as a career play

New York-based comedian Eitan Levine, who hosts the live Jewish game show “Jewish or Anti-Semitic,” had a sharp take on Macklemore’s removal from Ed Sheeran’s Loop Tour.

“This is all about Macklemore’s bottom line, baby,” Levine said on “The John Curley Show” on KIRO Newsradio. “This had nothing to do with Palestinians. This is all Macklemore trying to get Spotify downloads.”

The Seattle rapper was dropped from Ed Sheeran’s tour after saying “Free Palestine” on stage and showing footage from the war in Gaza during two shows at New Jersey’s MetLife Stadium. New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft barred Macklemore from Gillette Stadium and, according to the rapper, rallied other stadium owners to give Sheeran an ultimatum: drop Macklemore or lose the venues.

Macklemore’s ‘Jewface’ history

Levine said Macklemore has a history of anti-Semitic behavior, pointing to a 2014 incident in which the rapper wore a prosthetic hooked nose, black wig, and fake beard during a Seattle concert. Critics widely interpreted the costume as a Jewish caricature.

“He put on that Jewface,” Levine said. “And then when he was asked to apologize for it, he didn’t apologize. What he said was, ‘I didn’t know that what I did was offensive.’ I’m not the biggest moron to ever exist in the history of the world. No way do I believe that he put on that costume and didn’t know.”

Bluey fans meet Gwar

Levine said Macklemore agreed in advance to keep his set apolitical — then did the opposite.

“Ed Sheeran’s concerts are essentially Wiggles concerts. This is easy squeezy music,” Levine said. “This would be like if you went to see Bluey Live and Gwar opened up.”

He said Macklemore told the tour organizers, Sheeran, and venue owners he wouldn’t bring politics on stage.

“And what is the first thing that he does? He goes onto the stage in front of the crowd, and he puts up the footage from the war in Gaza as the opening act for Ed Sheeran. That’s crazy,” Levine said.

Kraft’s move backfires

Curley said Kraft’s public intervention may have backfired.

“I think the mistake was made when Robert Kraft says, I don’t want you performing at the stadium, and I’m going to call up my other buddies that own a bunch of stadiums and tell them not to perform there, as well,” Curley said. “I think that at that point, Macklemore became the victim.”

Levine agreed the response was handled poorly but noted that Kraft has discussed committing $2 million — at Sheeran’s request — to humanitarian efforts in the region after Macklemore pledged $1 million to Palestinian causes.

‘Not everything needs to be a problem’

Curley said the episode fits a familiar playbook for a rapper whose cultural relevance has faded.

“It works for somebody like Macklemore, who hasn’t exactly been on the tip of everybody’s tongue in a while,” Curley said. “He hits all sort of the right stuff you’re supposed to say. And then everybody’s like, ‘Yeah, we love you, Macklemore.'”

Levine said the pattern extends well beyond one rapper.

“Just like every time Mark Ruffalo goes out there, or Hannah Einbinder goes out there, or any one of these other Hollywood celebrities, he will ultimately be the one that sees a benefit from this, not the Palestinians, not people in the West Bank,” Levine said.

He added that most Americans are simply tired of the conflict dominating everything, including pop concerts.

“The average Ed Sheeran fan wants to take their kids to listen to Galway Girl and then go home and watch Dancing with the Stars,” Levine said. “Not everything needs to be a problem at the end of the day.”

As for Sheeran? Levine said the singer “is realizing what happens when you give your most toxic friend a favor.”

Watch the full discussion in the video above.

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