By The Daily Caller (U.S.) | Created at 2026-10-03 18:11:33 | Updated at 2026-10-03 19:12:27
1 hour ago
Zach Bryan turned a sold-out stadium show into a rebuke of the billionaire who owns the building.
The country star performed Oct. 2 at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, in a black T-shirt reading “FREE PALESTINE” above an image of a pine tree and the phrase “An Appeal to Heaven,” according to Page Six. Several of his band members dressed in Palestine-themed clothing, and guitarist Noah Le Gros wore a green Palestine soccer jersey, posing afterward in front of Kraft Sports and Entertainment signage. “Appeal to Heaven” and the pine tree refer to a historical American Revolutionary War flag connected to George Washington’s campaign and the belief among some colonists that God could be summoned to aid in their cause.
Gillette belongs to Robert Kraft, the New England Patriots owner who weeks earlier led a group of venue owners pressing Ed Sheeran to cut rapper Macklemore from his tour over pro-Palestinian statements. Bryan, 30, said nothing about the shirt from the stage, Billboard reported, closing the first of two nights on his With Heaven On Tour. (RELATED: Macklemore Announces Pro-Palestine Tour After Being Booted From Ed Sheeran’s Concerts)
The Grammy winner answered the next morning. In a post quoted by The Hollywood Reporter, Bryan wrote, “I didn’t put on a FREE PALESTINE shirt to please everybody. I wore it because some things are bigger than music, fame, and public approval. You’re free to disagree with me, but I’m not going to pretend I don’t care just to keep everyone comfortable.”
Zach Bryan Wears 'Free Palestine' Shirt at Robert Kraft's Gillette Stadium https://t.co/qt1a77hQqD
— TMZ (@TMZ) October 3, 2026Kraft had defended the Macklemore ban by pointing to what he called a record of rhetoric and imagery he viewed as offensive to the Jewish community, saying the rapper’s appearance would cross a line. A representative for Kraft did not respond to a request for comment on Bryan’s shirt, The Wrap reported, and Kraft himself stayed silent.
Macklemore wore a keffiyeh and called for a free Palestine during Sheeran’s MetLife Stadium dates Sept. 4 and 5, then kept up the messaging after a promoter asked him to stop. He has since launched his own sold-out Free Palestine tour across Europe, according to Page Six.
Bryan has drawn political fire before. The Hill reported that a 2025 song snippet critical of immigration raids brought a rebuke from then-Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, who called it “completely disrespectful.”
Bryan is scheduled to return to Gillette for a second night Oct. 3, leaving open whether the shirt reappears and whether Kraft responds.
