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Isaac Slade, the former lead singer of the Fray, opened for Ed Sheeran on Saturday as Sheeran's Loop Tour resumed in Atlanta.
Sheeran performed without an opening act Sept. 19 in Philadelphia, his first show since Macklemore left the tour. Supporting acts Finneas, Aaron Rowe and Lukas Graham also exited after Macklemore.
Sheeran's concerts in Massachusetts last week were canceled because of a nor'easter, giving him extra time to find a new opener.
Before Saturday's show, it was announced that Sheeran would take the stage closer to his usual time because an unannounced artist had filled the opening slot. That artist was Slade, who co-founded the Denver pop rock band and was its lead singer from 2002 to 2022. He began his first solo tour in late 2025.
Slade performed in the slot originally booked for Macklemore. When the tour stopped in Toronto in August, Sheeran brought Slade onstage to perform the Fray's "How to Save a Life."
Slade stopped midset to address the crowd, describing Macklemore and Sheeran as two friends on opposite sides of a political divide.
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He said everyone seemed to be taking sides, and that was good. He called what is happening in Gaza wrong but said getting through it would take people willing to stand in the middle, on common ground he likened to a "bonfire in the middle of the field," according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Macklemore opened Sheeran's shows at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey and called for a free Palestine. He was then dropped from the tour, apparently by venue owners, and Sheeran's other opening acts left in solidarity.
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