Hayley Williams makes bold tour move amid Ed Sheeran and Macklemore controversy

Hayley Williams has made a pointed move amid the ongoing controversy surrounding Ed Sheeran and Macklemore.

It comes following major backlash which began when rapper Macklemore was removed from the British singer's US tour after publicly voicing his support for Palestine during his performances at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.

Macklemore, real name Benjamin Hammond Haggerty, had been performing as one of the support acts on Sheeran's Loop tour when he addressed the situation in Gaza and the occupied West Bank during his 4 and 5 September shows.

He told the crowd 'Free Palestine' before performing his protest track Hind's Hall, with images depicting destruction in Gaza shown on stadium screens.

The comments sparked backlash from pro-Israel and antisemitism-focused organisations, with the Israeli American Council calling for him to be removed from the tour.

Macklemore, 43, subsequently defended his position, arguing that his criticism was directed at the Israeli government rather than Jewish people.

In his statement following his removal from the tour, he also said that the focus should remain on Palestinians experiencing the conflict, writing that the people with careers and platforms were not the victims.

He said, 'The victims are the Palestinian people', referring to Palestinians he said had been killed, starved and displaced.

Sheeran subsequently addressed the controversy, saying he was 'appalled' by the conflict between Israel and Palestine and describing the suffering as a 'human tragedy'.

He went on to insist, however, that Macklemore's removal was not his decision, and had been made by the tour promoter after venues told him they would not allow the shows to go ahead if the rap star remained on the bill.

Sheeran, 35, also explained why he had chosen not to make similar political statements during his own concerts, saying his audiences include young people and children from a range of backgrounds.

But the explanation did little to stop the fallout, and days later, all other artists that had been booked to support Sheeran announced they'd dropped out.

FINNEAS, Lukas Graham, Aaron Rowe and Irish band Beoga all withdrew from the remaining dates.

Paramore frontwoman Hayley Williams has since embroiled herself in the political drama, by showing her support for the five artists who walked away from Sheeran's tour.

In a gig at Forest Hills Stadium in New York on Wednesday (16 Sept), she played a number of Macklemore, FINNEAS, Lukas Graham, Aaron Rowe and Beoga's most famous tracks in her pre-show playlist before taking to the stage herself.

The playlist featured Macklemore's 'Can't Hold Us' and 'Thrift Shop', Lukas Graham's 'Mama Said', FINNEAS' 'For Cryin' Out Loud', Rowe's 'The Lane' and Beoga's 'Aurora II'.

While announcing his resignation from Sheeran's four, FINNEAS said, 'Artists must not be silenced when they speak up for the oppressed', adding that he stood with Palestine and its people.

Rowe, meanwhile, cited his Irish background and said he could not continue while believing artists were being silenced over their support for Palestinians.

Lukas Graham's frontman Lukas Forchhammer also criticised the role of money and power in determining which voices could be heard, and Beoga said it was leaving following what it described as the 'silencing of Macklemore'.

The row has also spilled over into ticket sales and resale activity.

According to The Independent, fans attempting to resell tickets to Sheeran's forthcoming shows in light of this week's drama have reported struggling to find buyers, while resale prices for some dates have fallen below face value.

Ticketdata, which tracks resale prices, reported that tickets for Sheeran's Philadelphia show on 19 September had fallen by 29 percent over the previous week on verified resale platforms including StubHub and SeatGeek.

Meanwhile, Macklemore has pledged to donate his $1 million (£750,000) net earnings from the tour to six organisations working to support Palestinians.

He also challenged Robert Kraft, the billionaire owner of Gillette Stadium, to match the donation. Kraft subsequently said Sheeran had called him and asked him to commit $2 million towards humanitarian aid in the region.

Sky News reported that Sheeran had also asked the billionaire to contribute to aid efforts, although the musician had not publicly confirmed the donation at the time of its report.