Macklemore’s forthcoming Wembley performance is set to raise money for a group described as “extremist” after it reportedly said Hamas’s taking of hostages on October 7 was “legitimate”.
Palestinian Youth Movement (PYM) Britain has also called for a nationwide “siege” targeting Labour MPs over their position on the war in Gaza.
Despite the controversy, the organisation has been named as one of the beneficiaries of Macklemore’s Free Palestine concert in London on October 30.
The American rapper announced shows at Wembley Arena, as well as venues in Paris and Dublin, after he was removed from Ed Sheeran’s tour last month following pro-Palestinian comments made on stage.
Several venues in the United States reportedly told promoters they would not host the 43-year-old performer, whose real name is Benjamin Hammond Haggerty. He had used his opening appearances to chant “Free Palestine” and deliver a politically charged speech.
The dispute began at New Jersey’s MetLife Stadium before developing into a wider row that threatened to overshadow Sheeran’s tour, after other support acts pulled out in solidarity with Macklemore.
The Macklemore & Friends: Free Palestine tour is now due to reach Wembley Arena only weeks after the anniversary of the October 7 Hamas attack.
Organisers say proceeds from the concerts will be donated to several organisations supporting “Palestine and the Palestinian movement”.
The decision to include PYM Britain among the beneficiaries has prompted criticism from politicians and Jewish community leaders, who have characterised the group as “extremist”.
Critics point to statements in which PYM Britain allegedly described October 7 as a “prison break” that was “fundamentally just”, claims they say amount to support for Hamas, a proscribed terrorist organisation.
Following the attack, in which 1,200 people were killed and 250 others were taken hostage, PYM Britain posted on X: “When people are occupied, resistance is justified.”
The Macklemore & Friends: Free Palestine tour is due at Wembley Arena weeks after the anniversary of the October 7 Hamas attack
Macklemore was removed from Ed Sheeran’s Loop tour after making pro-Palestinian remarks during the singer’s New Jersey shows last month
The inclusion of Palestinian Youth Movement Britain as a beneficiary of Macklemore’s Free Palestine concert has sparked concern
PYM Britain spokesperson Jeanie Hourani also appeared in a video seen by Our News Outlet, in which she described Hamas terrorists’ taking of hostages as “legitimate” and “effective”.
In a separate video, she was heard saying the group wanted to make Zionism “untenable” wherever Zionists “live, work, organise, study, and socialise”.
PYM Britain has also been accused of publicly backing the proscribed group Palestine Action, with the organisation stating that “direct action has never been more necessary”.
Opponents have further accused the movement of failing to take concerns about MPs’ safety seriously after it called for a nationwide “Siege on Labour”. The campaign targeted politicians, councillors and party staff over the Government’s approach to Israel and Gaza.
Its demands for a planned day of action in 2025 included calls for then-Foreign Secretary David Lammy to be dismissed and prosecuted as a war criminal at The Hague. The group also called for “Zionism” to become “a political crisis for the political class in this country”.
PYM Britain describes itself as a grassroots movement that “organises Palestinian and Arab youth to struggle for Palestinian liberation”. The group faced further criticism after organising a youth football tournament in Kensington, west London, in August this year.
The group shared a photograph on social media of five children with their backs to the camera, with only two wearing numbers on their shirts – displaying 7 and 10.
Advocates claim this was a deliberate reference to the October 7 atrocities.
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In May of this year, PYM was revealed to have hosted a youth event where 100 young attendees were seen on footage chanting in Arabic: ‘We will have victory over Zionism’.
At the ‘summer school’, which was held at the Youth Hostel Association (YHA) Edale Activity Centre in Derbyshire, they added: ‘We will return, young people rise up, our revolution is an Arab revolution’.
Participants were also lectured about Ghassan Kanafani, the former spokesperson for the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), a designated terrorist organisation responsible for multiple plane hijackings in the late 1960s and 1970s.
The YHA England and Wales, which operates the venue, said at the time that it would investigate, adding the ‘views or activities of private groups using our facilities do not represent YHA’s views or values’.
Ahead of Macklemore’s planned UK concert, the Jewish Leadership Council (JLC) has written to event promoter Live Nation and OVO Arena Wembley to raise its concerns about the inclusion of PYM Britain as a beneficiary.
The JLC has also questioned the platforming of Macklemore as an artist, after he previously caused outrage in 2014 by wearing a costume that featured a black wig, beard and large prosthetic nose.
Macklemore later apologised for the outfit, which was widely condemned as a racist ‘Jewish caricature’.
The rapper again prompted fury after he juxtaposed photographs taken during the Holocaust from the Warsaw Ghetto with images of a Palestinian child in the West Bank, for his 2025 music video, F**** up.
Jewish leaders have also questioned the platforming of Macklemore as an artist at Wembley Arena, after he wore a costume that featured a black wig, beard and large prosthetic nose condemned as a racist ‘Jewish caricature’
Palestinian Youth Movement members at a protest in London, in January 2025. Critics say PYM has expressed support for Hamas and Palestine Action
A JLC spokesperson told Our News Outlet: ‘The Palestinian Youth Movement has described 7 October as ‘a prison break’ and praised young people joining armed factions.
‘Its inclusion as a beneficiary of Macklemore’s concert raises serious questions about Live Nation’s due diligence.
‘Live Nation must explain what checks it carried out on PYM and where the money will go.
‘At a time of grave violence and threats against Jewish communities, it must also explain how it will protect Jewish audiences and staff from antisemitic incitement and harassment.’
Rebecca Paul MP, shadow culture secretary, added that the promoters and venue have ‘serious questions’ to answer.
She said: ‘It is deeply concerning that a concert at Wembley is raising money for the Palestinian Youth Movement, an organisation which has described the events of 7 October as a ‘prison break’ and organised campaigns targeting British MPs and their offices.
‘Live Nation and OVO Arena Wembley now have serious questions to answer about why they are helping to fund this particular organisation, what checks they have undertaken and how the money will be used.
‘At a time where Britain’s Jewish community is facing a tidal wave of hostility and aggression, venues have a responsibility to ensure they are not providing a fundraising platform for extremism – even inadvertently’.
Lord Walney, former UK Government’s independent adviser on political violence and disruption, described the planned gig as a ‘hate fest’.
He said: ‘Macklemore’s decision to fundraise for a group that has reportedly celebrated Hamas’s 7th October atrocities and calls for the targeting of ‘Zionists’ doesn’t only expose him as a dangerous hardliner, it showcases how far extremism has been normalised in the UK.
‘Shame on Live Nation and OVO Arena Wembley for their involvement in this hate fest. The Home Secretary must urgently clarify whether Macklemore’s presence in the UK is conducive to the public good.’
Our News Outlet has contacted Live Nation, representatives for Macklemore and the PYM Britain for comment.
