New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft has been accused of playing a central role in Macklemore’s removal from Ed Sheeran’s national tour, following intense criticism over the rapper’s onstage “Free Palestine” remarks.

It was confirmed Monday that Macklemore, 43, born Benjamin Hammond Haggerty, would no longer continue on the tour after several prominent U.S. venues reportedly told promoters they would not host his performance.

With the venue refusals threatening to derail dates for thousands of ticket-holders and potentially jeopardize the full tour, organizers ultimately opted to drop Macklemore from the lineup.

Soon after the announcement, the “Thrift Shop” artist addressed the controversy in an Instagram post, alleging that Kraft, an observant Orthodox Jew, had urged other stadium owners to issue an ultimatum.

In a lengthy Instagram post, Macklemore said: ‘Ed is my friend. I’ve known him for 13 years. I told Ed multiple times on the phone, our friendship can’t change my responsibility to tell the truth about what happened [in Gaza].

“Ed told me Robert Kraft had called him,” Macklemore wrote. “We were due to perform at Gillette Stadium, owned by the Kraft Group, later this month. According to Ed, Kraft said I would not be permitted to take the stage at his stadium.

“Ed also said Kraft had brought together several other stadium owners, and that they issued a collective ultimatum: Keep Macklemore on the tour, and you will not be able to perform at our venues.”

The rapper added: “I hope this does not mark the end of my relationship with Ed. A friendship spanning 13 years should not vanish over one deeply painful disagreement.”

‘I hope we both continue listening, studying what is happening in Palestine and wrestling with what neutrality means in a moment like this. My door will always be open to continuing that conversation.’

The drama started when Macklemore used his opening set to chant ‘Free Palestine’ and deliver a politically motivated speech.

Macklemore, whose words were slammed by Pink, stated that every human being deserves the same freedom, and told the crowd he wanted people in Gaza and the occupied West Bank to know they had not been forgotten.

He then performed his protest song Hind’s Hall while images of the devastation in Gaza were projected on the big screens at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.

Macklemore also faced a boycott petition calling for his removal from Sheeran’s tour for the blunt and direct language he used onstage.

He was the opening act for Sheeran’s Loop tour on two consecutive nights, September 4 and September 5, at New Jersey’s MetLife Stadium.

Macklemore has also previously voiced support for Palestinians and called out Israel’s conduct in Gaza and the occupied West Bank and has continued doing so for years.

As seen in fan-taken footage, he wore a keffiyeh at one point during his set.

During his performance, he said he had a message to share with the Palestinian people and wanted them to know ‘they have not been forgotten.’

He said: ‘One of the reasons why I wanted to come on this tour was because I wanted to stand up here on stages in stadiums across America and say two words that are very near and dear to my heart: Free Palestine. I said, Free Palestine!

‘I want those words to be loud and clear so that people from Gaza, all the way to the occupied West Bank know that we have not forgotten them.’

Elsewhere in his statement, Macklemore claimed that Sheeran informed him that the phrase ‘Free Palestine’ was ‘hurtful to a lot of people he spoke with’. 

The rapper continued: ‘Ed was in a f***ed up position. He knew it. His typical apolitical stance was being challenged in a way it never had been before. 

‘He told me that the words ‘Free Palestine’ and the image of the Palestinian flag were hurtful to a lot of people he spoke with. I told him that if those words were more offensive than tens of thousands of Palestinian children being killed by Israel, then there was a fundamental disconnect between where those people stood and where I stood. But he couldn’t get past his public facing, ‘I don’t take sides.”

Meanwhile, Pink weighed in on Macklemore’s recent controversy, amid calls from fans for the rapper to be removed from the tour.

The singer, 47, reposted an Instagram Story from StopAntisemitism, which slammed Macklemore’s performance.

The caption on the post read: ‘Awful – Jewish fans bought tickets to see Ed Sheeran sing last night in NJ, not to be ambushed by Macklemore’s anti-Israel propaganda.

‘Instead, Macklemore walked onstage in a keffiyeh, shouted “Free Palestine,” accused Israel of a false “genocide,” and turned a mainstream event into a political nightmare against the Jewish state. Concert goers are owed apologies and refunds.’

Meanwhile, the rapper’s allegation against Kraft come just days after it was revealed that the Patriots chief had donated $10million to Brandeis University to put towards the creation of the ‘Robert K. Kraft Family Center for Jewish Life and Leadership’.

In a statement provided to the university, Kraft said: ‘Brandeis University’s longstanding commitment to excellence, belonging, and Jewish traditions and values has shaped generations of leaders.

‘The Kraft family has always been proud to support Brandeis and I am pleased to strengthen the work of the university and create a Hillel on campus to help educate and inspire students to carry forward the university’s mission.’ 

Sophie Cunningham’s personal life drew attention on social media Friday after photos surfaced of the Indiana Fever guard with her rumored boyfriend.

The Sports Illustrated Swimsuit model appeared all smiles while posing on a boat at Missouri’s Lake of the Ozarks with Frank Adams, the head athletic trainer for Grand Canyon University’s men’s basketball program, according to The Sun.

The images were posted by the X account “Fever Updates” and appear to have been taken during a Sept. 7 celebration in Missouri for Cunningham’s 30th birthday.

Cunningham also shared an Instagram post featuring herself in the same bikini alongside a birthday cake.

Adams joined Grand Canyon University’s sports medicine staff in 2025.

He previously spent six years as an assistant athletic trainer with the Phoenix Suns.

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Cunningham played for the Phoenix Mercury from 2019 through 2024. The NBA’s Suns and the WNBA’s Mercury are both owned by Mat Ishbia.

Neither Cunningham nor Adams has publicly commented on the speculation surrounding their relationship.

Photos posted online earlier this year also showed the pair together at Grand Canyon University basketball games.

Cunningham, who drew attention for supporting a ban on transgender athletes competing in girls’ and women’s sports, attended Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series Enjoy Illinois 300 at WWT Raceway as the WNBA remains on break for the FIBA World Cup.

The U.S. women’s basketball team overcame an early 14-point deficit to defeat France 97-79 in the FIBA World Cup final on Sunday to win a fifth consecutive World Cup.

Donald Trump Jr. and Bettina Trump have acknowledged that Russian oligarch Umar Kremlev contributed hundreds of thousands of dollars to the lavish Bahamas celebration held after their wedding.

Trump Jr., the president’s eldest son, married 39-year-old model and socialite Bettina in Palm Beach in late May. The newlyweds later traveled to the Bahamas for an extravagant reception.

President Trump was not present for his son’s wedding ceremony, with national security duties cited as tensions and the war with Iran intensified.

A report published Monday said Kremlev, a wealthy businessman and associate of Russian President Vladimir Putin, helped cover part of the costs connected to the couple’s wedding festivities.

The report alleged that Kremlev financed the rental of a private island, a fireworks display and other expenses that reportedly ran into the hundreds of thousands of dollars.

According to ProPublica, Kremlev’s team was also involved in organizing the Bahamas celebration.

Bettina Trump responded to the reports Monday by sharing a collection of previously unseen wedding photos and describing the Russian businessman as “our dear friend Umar.”

She said Kremlev had “very generously hosted two incredible nights of celebrations for us,” while emphasizing that the events he funded took place “after our wedding.”

Bettina and Don Jr. had 18 guests at the ceremony and 50 people at the reception of their Bahamas celebration earlier this year. 

She ended the fiery statement by telling her followers: ‘Friendship doesn’t require a political motive. Generosity doesn’t automatically come with an agenda.’  

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Mrs Trump wrote on Instagram this morning: ‘Don and I got married privately on Friday, surrounded ONLY by our family. It was intimate, deeply personal and one of the most beautiful days of our lives.

‘The weekend that followed had actually been planned well in advance as a fun weekend with friends. It was never intended to be our wedding weekend. When our original wedding plans changed, we simply decided to get married before it and arrived at an already planned weekend as newlyweds.

‘Our dear friend Umar very generously hosted two incredible nights of celebrations for us AFTER our wedding. It was an extraordinarily generous wedding gift from a friend, and something for which we were and remain incredibly grateful.

‘It’s unfortunate that something so personal and happy can be recast as something political or sinister simply because of who someone is or where they come from. Friendship doesn’t require a political motive. Generosity doesn’t automatically come with an agenda. And sometimes a wedding gift is simply a wedding gift.

‘We are fortunate to have wonderful friends from all over the world, and we will never be embarrassed or apologetic about being grateful for them.

‘So, for anyone determined not to let the facts get in the way of a good story: NO CONSPIRACY , NO MYSTERY. Just a private family wedding, a wonderful weekend with friends and one hell of a party.

‘And since fake news travels fast, we figured the truth deserved a few pictures.’

She signed off the post with the caption: ‘With love and gratitude, Don & Bettina.’

The couple celebrated their wedding with Don Jr’s siblings, Eric, 42, and Ivanka, 44, who also came with them to the Bahamas afterwards.

The couple’s marriage certificate, obtained by the Daily Mail, shows that they officially became husband and wife in a secret ceremony held at the West Palm Beach home of Anderson’s sister, Kristina McPherson.

Anderson said she would be taking the Trump surname.

A bride-to-be has ignited a heated online debate after asking her wedding guests to comply with one particularly strict condition.

In a Reddit post that quickly went viral, the woman said perfume is her “biggest migraine trigger” and asked every attendee to avoid wearing fragranced products on her wedding day.

According to the bride, her reactions can become so intense that the symptoms may even “mimic a stroke.”

“For medical reasons, our wedding will be a fragrance free event,” the couple’s invitation stated.

“The bride and members of the bridal party have severe fragrance allergies that will trigger significant health reactions.

“We kindly request that all guests refrain from wearing scented sprays/lotions/perfumes,” it continued.

The bride said she simply hopes guests will respect the request, as she does not want a preventable health episode to derail her wedding celebration.

On the surface, it might sound like a reasonable accommodation.

But online commenters, as often happens, had plenty to say.

The Reddit post spread rapidly, drawing thousands of reactions and sparking a fierce discussion over whether a fragrance-free wedding request is fair to guests.

“This is awesome, me personally I would also add that ‘any guest found in violation of this policy will be denied entry to the event’”, one person wrote.

Another user suggested the ban should extend to washing powders, writing: “I love the idea, but I think you should add laundry detergent to be considered.”

They even continued by suggesting the couple hire a “trusted sniffer” to help “reinforce” the strict rule.

“I’d rather smell body odour than fragrances. At least it’s natural,” another person chimed in.

However, many others slammed these suggestions as downright diabolical.

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Critics argued that at this stage, the couple should just “elope” to save everyone the hassle.

“Not sure how they will enforce this, and laundry detergent smells are taking it several miles too far,” someone said.

Another definitively added that they absolutely draw the line at the idea of a ‘trusted sniffer’.

Expert weights in

Etiquette expert Jo Hayes told news.com.au that she thinks the bride’s request was entirely reasonable.

“The way the bride has phrased this request is also perfectly polite and graceful. It doesn’t sound demanding or dogmatic, and it’s phrased clearly and respectfully,” she shared.

She went on to say that many of the additional comments were, however, “unreasonable,” like the suggestion of a ‘sniff test’.

“If someone does forget, having a member of the bridal party, or another designated person, discretely pulling them aside and asking them to wash it off is probably more appropriate,” Ms Hayes shared.

“Honestly, I think that most bride’s don’t want to be a bridezilla – they simply want to enjoy their wedding day to the full, and want their guests to have a wonderful time as well.”

‘Very weird’ wedding demands

This isn’t the first time an intense wedding request has ruffled feathers.

In another recent Reddit thread, a bridesmaid shared an exhaustive list of rules a bride imposed ahead of the big day.

The outrageous demands dictated that bridesmaids couldn’t “gain weight” and must “be at her disposal and do anything she wants.”

The catering was equally restrictive, with the wedding menu completely ignoring vegetarians and vegans.

“Very weird considering the whole friend group is some kind of variation of that,” the bridesmaid said.

“I don’t know if I should laugh or cry.”

So, where do you draw the line with bridezilla requests? Let us know in the comments.

A juror who supported finding Massachusetts mother Lindsay Clancy not criminally responsible for the deaths of her three children said the panel saw the emotionally charged case as a possible catalyst for helping other women and families. A legal analyst, however, says that rationale raises serious concerns about how jurors should reach a verdict.

Paula Devlin, 65, one of 11 jurors who backed a finding that Clancy was not criminally responsible, told “CBS Saturday Morning” that the jurors believed their deliberations could have significance beyond the courtroom. “Even though we didn’t know what was going on outside of our little bubble that we were in, we knew that this was a turning point, and this would be something that could change something to make it better for other women in the future, for other families,” Devlin said. “You know, justice for those children is this never happening again.”

Devlin said the Lindsay Clancy murder trial jury was initially divided: eight jurors favored a finding of not criminally responsible, two had not yet made up their minds, and two — including the eventual holdout — were leaning toward guilt. The panel ultimately deadlocked 11-1, resulting in a mistrial.

Neama Rahmani, a Los Angeles trial attorney and legal analyst following the case, said Devlin’s comments point to a troubling approach to jury deliberations. “Devlin’s statement is problematic,” he told News Media. “Jurors are supposed to decide cases solely based on the facts of that case. In the Clancy case, they were to decide whether she was criminally responsible.”

Rahmani said jurors are tasked with applying the law to the evidence presented, rather than attempting to shape the law or influence broader social outcomes.

“It is not appropriate for the jurors to consider the impact of their decision on other women, children or cases,” Rahmani said.

Still, he added, there is little practical recourse after jurors have disclosed the thinking that guided their deliberations.

“Judge Sullivan already declared a mistrial and the law generally prohibits inquiry into juror deliberations,” he said. “There is an exception for outside influences that may prejudice the jury, but that would need an additional inquiry into whether the jurors considered information on traditional or social media or whether this was just Devlin’s interpretation of the importance of the case.”

Several jurors and Clancy’s defense attorney Kevin Reddington have claimed that the holdout at the end didn’t show his fellow jurors the evidence that he believed pointed toward guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

“If he had shown us some evidence, then we all would have been OK with that,” Devlin told CBS.

The holdout juror has not responded to News Media’s attempts to reach him and has not spoken publicly about the case as of Monday.

A GiveSendGo fundraiser to benefit him has raised over $115,000 in the past few days. According to the organizer, it is meant to cover “security, lawyers [and] lost work.”

Separately, Clancy’s husband Patrick Clancy vacationed in the Hamptons over the weekend, pictured with his new wife Rachel Danis at the Milk Pail farm stand on Montauk Highway in Water Mill, according to a photograph obtained by TMZ.

Lindsay Clancy has been accused of three counts of first-degree murder after the strangling deaths of her children, Cora, 5, Dawson, 3, and Callan, 8 months. Her defense did not dispute that she killed them with exercise bands but instead argued that she was not criminally responsible due to postpartum psychosis.