Ed Sheeran has lined up two musicians to open the remaining US dates of his Loop Tour.
The 35-year-old Galway Girl singer was left without opening acts after rapper Macklemore was removed from the tour following pro-Palestine comments he made onstage at two New Jersey concerts. Sheeran’s other support acts subsequently withdrew in protest.
After Sheeran played Philadelphia without a support act, Isaac Slade, the former frontman of The Fray, was added to the lineup for last weekend’s show in Atlanta.
Slade confirmed on Instagram on Thursday that he will remain on the bill for the rest of the US dates. He is scheduled to perform in Indianapolis on October 10, Charlotte on October 17, Arlington on October 24 and Tampa on November 7.
“See you out there,” he wrote in the caption.
American Idol contestant Brooks Rosser will also join the tour as an opening act, appearing with Sheeran at the Indianapolis concert.
Ed Sheeran, 35, has added two musicians as opening acts for the remaining dates of his Loop Tour after his original support acts dropped out; Sheeran pictured in 2025
Rosser, who competed on season 24 of American Idol earlier this year, announced the opportunity on Instagram on Thursday.
“My first show since American Idol, and it’s at Lucas Oil Stadium opening for @teddysphotos. I’m beyond excited and grateful. See you Saturday!” he wrote.
Sheeran is also due to perform in Hollywood, Florida, on October 29 and October 30. Those shows will not feature opening acts because they are being held at casinos.
Slade has already made surprise appearances at several of Sheeran’s concerts. In late August, he joined the singer onstage in Toronto to perform The Fray’s 2005 hit How to Save a Life.
During his opening set last weekend, Slade performed How to Save a Life again, along with another of The Fray’s best-known songs, You Found Me.
Between the two songs, he reportedly told Sheeran’s fans that he was “honored to be here.”
Addressing the crowd, the musician said: “Everybody seems to be taking sides in this world and that’s good.”
“What’s happening over there is wrong but if we’re going to get through it, we’re going to need people to step into that middle place, that common ground,” he added.
Isaac Slade, The Fray’s former lead singer, recently appeared as a “special guest” at Sheeran’s Atlanta show and confirmed that he will perform at the remaining US dates; pictured in 2019
Slade said on Instagram that he will perform at Sheeran’s concerts in Indianapolis on October 10, Charlotte on October 17, Arlington on October 24 and Tampa on November 7
“See you out there,” Slade wrote in the caption
Slade previously joined Sheeran onstage in Toronto in late August for a duet of The Fray’s 2005 hit How to Save a Life; pictured (left) with members of The Fray
American Idol contestant Brooks Rosser, pictured, will be the other opening act and is set to join Sheeran at the Indianapolis show
Rosser will join Sheeran at the Indianapolis show. ‘my first show since American Idol, and it’s at Lucas Oil Stadium opening for @teddysphotos. I’m beyond excited and grateful,’ he wrote
‘That bonfire in the middle of the field that sees both sides, that understands that peace is not a lack of conflict,’ he added as he appeared to show his support for Sheeran amid the controversy. ‘Peace is not a black canvas that we need to guard and be polite.’
He said that peace ‘holds enough beauty, enough tragedy, enough sorrow, enough joy and life if we learn how to integrate it and hold each other in balance.’
Slade concluded his mini-speech by adding: ‘We will find a way through this together.’
In recent weeks, Sheeran’s stadium tour was at the center of a massive controversy and the Irish singer saw his supporting acts – Finneas, Lukas Graham and backing band Beoga – quit after kicking Macklemore off of the opening act lineup.
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Last month, Macklemore performed at two shows on Sheeran’s Loop Tour and sparked polarizing reactions when he gave a ‘Free Palestine’ speech and performed his protest song Hind’s Hall.
Subsequently, stadium owners like Robert Kraft allegedly threatened to cancel and shut down Sheeran’s following shows if Macklemore was kept as Sheeran’s opening act.
The shows at Gillette Stadium, one of multiple venues owned by Kraft, were eventually canceled due to weather concerns anyway.
After each side shared their own personal statements via social media, Sheeran continued to receive backlash and apologized while performing in Philadelphia on September 19.
He said he had been ‘making mistakes’ and was ‘so, so sorry’ for the drama and related events.
Sheeran’s stadium tour has been at the center of a massive controversy and the singer saw his supporting acts quit after kicking Macklemore off of the opening act lineup, following his ‘free Palsetine’ comments on stage; pictured with Macklemore in 2014
Finneas, Lukas Graham and Aaron Rowe, as well as his backing band Beoga all left in solidarity with Macklemore; Finneas is seen in LA back in November 2025
Sheeran has continued to receive backlash and apologized while performing in Philadelphia on September 19 (pictured), saying he was ‘deeply’ worried about freedom of speech
‘This has put me in the middle of an important, passionate argument about freedom of speech on the most complex issue on the planet,’ he said as he got emotional at one point during his show that day sans opening acts.
He said he ‘always’ intended for his music to create a ‘safe space for everybody.’
‘That matters hugely to me,’ he told concert attendees on that day.
‘Honoring my commitment to my fans is also completely essential to who I am. That is why I’m here tonight, on my own, continuing my own tour.’
He also said he was ‘deeply’ worried about freedom of speech being encumbered. ‘It should never happen in the free world.’
Up next, Sheeran will be continuing to take his Loop Tour across the United States before wrapping in Tampa, Florida in early November.
He will then be kicking off a short leg across Latin America before concluding his world tour in Mexico City on December 11.
Meanwhile, Macklemore has revealed his upcoming Free Palestine tour sold-out ‘immediately’ – after he announced the concert in response to getting cut from Sheeran’s tour.
Last month, Macklemore performed at two shows on Sheeran’s Loop Tour and sparked polarizing reactions when he gave a ‘Free Palestine’ speech and performed his protest song Hind’s Hall; pictured in August
The rapper recently revealed his upcoming Free Palestine tour sold-out ‘immediately’ – after he announced the concert in response to getting cut from Sheeran’s tour
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‘All three shows sold out immediately,’ Macklemore revealed on Instagram last month.
‘I’m honestly blown away. We put these shows together fast and in community, believing that musicians can stand in solidarity with Palestine, use the stage to raise funds and show what collective action can look like.’
Macklemore will be embarking on a three-date ‘Free Palestine’ tour with artists who have ‘used their stages to stand in solidarity with the Palestinian people, regardless of the consequences’.
The ‘Macklemore & Friends: Free Palestine’ tour consists of concerts in Dublin, Paris and London.