Zach Bryan Wears 'Free Palestine' Shirt at Robert Kraft's Gillette Stadium, Weeks After Kraft Barred Macklemore

Zach Bryan opened his two-night run at Gillette Stadium on Friday, October 2, wearing a black T-shirt that read Free Palestine, with several of his bandmates dressed in matching Palestine-themed gear, according to TMZ and Billboard. Guitarist Noah Le Gros wore a green Palestine soccer jersey and later posted a photo of himself standing in front of Kraft Sports and Entertainment signage, according to the New York Post.

The New York Post reported Bryan's shirt also carried an Appeal to Heaven reference beneath a pine tree image, a nod to a Revolutionary War-era flag tied to George Washington's Continental Army. Bryan did not mention the shirt or explain it from the stage, according to Billboard and a report from kjwl.

The venue made the message impossible to ignore. Gillette Stadium is owned by the Kraft Group, led by Patriots owner Robert Kraft, who roughly a month earlier played a central role in removing Macklemore from the remaining U.S. dates of Ed Sheeran's Loop Tour.

What happened with Macklemore

During his opening sets at MetLife Stadium on September 4 and 5, Macklemore told the crowd Free Palestine, performed his song Hind's Hall about the Columbia University protest encampments, and, according to Whiskey Riff, also voiced support for Iran and called ICE a terrorist organization. On the second night he told Jewish fans directly that his criticism was aimed at the Israeli government, not at them, Rolling Stone reported.

The reaction split fast. Guitarist Joe Bonamassa posted that an opening act has no business turning someone else's tour political, writing on X: "When you fill stadiums you can say what you want. When you are the opening act for someone who fills stadiums STFU!" Pink, who also performed on the tour and is Jewish, called Hamas a terrorist organization in her own statement, according to Whiskey Riff.

The Israeli-American Council launched a petition calling for Macklemore's removal. On September 14, tour promoter Messina Touring Group confirmed he would not appear on the remaining dates after, according to multiple reports including kjwl and Billboard, several NFL stadium owners threatened to pull their shows if he stayed on the bill.

Kraft confirmed his own role that day, saying in a statement reported by TheWrap and Whiskey Riff that Macklemore's stage material at MetLife, combined with what Kraft called "a broader history of antisemitic rhetoric and imagery" including a past instance of Macklemore dressing in what Kraft described as an offensive stereotypical Jewish costume, crossed a line he felt responsible to address. Kraft added that he agreed too many lives had been lost and that Palestinian suffering was real.

Macklemore gave a different account of how it happened, saying Kraft personally called Sheeran, barred him from Gillette, and then rallied other stadium owners into an ultimatum: drop Macklemore or lose your venues. Rolling Stone noted that Kraft's statement never addressed that specific claim about rallying other owners. Sheeran, for his part, said in his own statement that the call was the promoter's decision, not his, and that he had spoken directly with Kraft while trying to find a resolution. Neither side's full account of exactly who pressured whom has been independently confirmed.

The fallout spread through the tour. Finneas, Aaron Rowe, Lukas Graham and Irish band Beoga all withdrew from the remaining Sheeran dates in solidarity, Rolling Stone reported, with Finneas writing "Artists must not be silenced when they speak up for the oppressed." Macklemore later pledged $1 million from his touring income to Palestinian aid organizations and announced a sold-out Free Palestine Tour hitting Dublin, Paris and London from October 26 to 30.

In an odd postscript, Sheeran's own Gillette Stadium dates, originally set for the weekend of September 25-26, never happened. They were scrapped because of severe weather, according to kjwl, meaning the shows at the center of the original standoff with Kraft were canceled anyway.

The fair case for Kraft's position

Kraft's side argues that a privately owned NFL stadium has the right to decide who performs political material on its stage, and Kraft cited specific past conduct by Macklemore, not just his current politics, as his reasoning. That is a defensible position even for people who disagree with where Kraft draws the line, and it is distinct from censorship by the government, which did not occur here.

Bryan is not a stranger to friction with Washington either. In October 2025, a teaser for his song Bad News, which references ICE raids, drew public criticism from Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, according to kjwl. Bryan pushed back at the time, saying the song spoke to broader concerns.

Neither Bryan's camp nor Kraft's team had responded to requests for comment as of Friday night, according to TMZ and Rolling Stone. Bryan is scheduled to return to Gillette Stadium for the second of his two sold-out shows Saturday night, October 3. It remains unclear whether he will wear the shirt again or how Kraft might respond.