Macklemore is a Seattle Sports Superfan. Now, He is also the Goal.

There’s a new Seattle sports tradition: During the seventh inning, the Mariners played Grammy Award-winning rapper Macklemore’s song “Can’t Hold Us.” A song and an artist mean more to Seattle than most outsiders realize. Macklemore, 41, born Ben Haggerty, is a Seattle native, and in the past twelve years has become as much a fixture of the city as the Space Needle. As a white rapper, with all the privilege involved, he gives more thought—and focus on his core work—to issues facing Black, brown, and other queer people.

Macklemore is also an unabashed fan of local sports. In addition to his music, which plays at every Seattle sporting event, Macklemore shows up to gather crowds before and during games. He even gave Seattle baseball legend Ken Griffey Jr. cameos in his music videos. Macklemore also puts his money into the sports arena as a minority investor in the Seattle Kraken of the National Hockey League and the Seattle Sounders FC men’s soccer team. New York City has Spike Lee; Los Angeles, Jack Nicholson; and Seattle sports group Macklemore.

But that could end. At a hip-hop festival called “Palestine Will Live Forever,” held in Seattle’s Seward Park, Macklemore reaffirmed his solidarity with the Palestinian people and his opposition to Israel’s war on Gaza and the of the United States to finance genocide. Last year, Macklemore released the “Free Palestine” anthem “Hind’s Hall,” named after the building occupied by protesters at Columbia University that was named in honor of Hind Rajab, a girl from A 6-year-old Palestinian whom Israeli forces killed as well. the family of Gaza. After performing his new single “Hind’s Hall 2” at the party, Macklemore appeared to respond to someone in the crowd and said, “Go ahead, say it. I’m not going to stop you. Yeah, fuck America.”

Shortly before the speakers were installed in the truck, the Sounders and Kraken released a joint statement indicating that they would cut all ties with Macklemore. They wrote, “We believe that sports bring people together and bring us together. We know Macklemore’s comments continue to be divisive, and do not reflect the quality of our teams, leagues or organizations. We are currently evaluating our collective options in this regard. ”

The Sounders and Kraken are sponsored by the American Jewish Committee of Seattle, whose regional director, Regina Sassoon Friedland, said, “I’m not really surprised by it, I’m disgusted by it. I hope businesses like Kraken and Mariners will reconsider their relationship and cut ties immediately.”

In addition, the organizers of the festival dropped Macklemore from the show in Las Vegas. It remembers what Ice T said a generation ago: “Freedom of speech… just watch what you say.”

In response to all of this, Macklemore released a statement in which he said:

I wish I was in a better place with my sadness and anger. But the truth is that I am not good. I haven’t been there yet. The last 11.5 months of watching the genocide in front of us has been emotionally, emotionally and humanly devastating. I am still in complete disbelief at the way our government is showing itself at this time in history. I don’t think I’m alone. I see the children who have been cut off from Gaza being taken out of the ruins, a massacre[ed] with bombs made by the US. I see my children in their lifeless bodies. I don’t think I’m alone.

We need to be clear (and the comments of the American Jewish Committee give the game): If Macklemore had said “fuck America” ​​in music or art that did not involve Palestine, no one would beng aware or caring. I remember seeing Flava Flav with an American flag tucked down his pants and in his zipper. Today, he is America’s Olympic favorite. A scholar saying “fuck America” ​​is not an uncommon occurrence in our popular culture, but defending the Palestinians is. Doing so—no matter who you are or where you work or how many Grammys you have—puts you at risk. It’s not just Macklemore. Concertgoers caught on camera as well as concert organizers and promoters are being harassed to attend or perform the whole day’s show.

Macklemore has been open about the fact that before October 7, he knew very little about Israel and Palestine, but he began to read and talk to others, and the more he learned about the bodies many of the dead children he saw on social media, and more. he felt compelled to do something. That included recording “Hind’s Hall,” one of the most downloaded songs of 2024; speaking out against Israeli attacks and sending US weapons to be used in genocide; and protect student protesters. Now, you are being watched. Most of the artists are quiet in Palestine; Defenders of the status quo insist on punishing the few who speak out – turning them into role models so that no one can dare to point out that the US is financing and equipping genocide in an obvious way.

Macklemore’s future in the Seattle sports world is in doubt. His absence would create a gap beyond that field. It would be a departure from the kind of social connection that Macklemore has pursued — sometimes cleverly, sometimes foolishly — throughout his career. The Seattle sports community – from players to players, to coaches to franchise owners – needs to stand up and say that Macklemore will not be erased from Seattle’s 21st century sports. the age he helped create. The first test will be Friday when the Mariners return from a road trip. Will “Can’t Hold Us” be played during the seventh episode? The answer to that question will speak volumes.