Fact Check: Did Spotify remove Ed Sheeran's songs from its platform?
NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK: A claim has been circulating on social media platforms that Spotify, the music streaming platform, has reportedly removed all of popular singer Ed Sheeran’s songs from its platform. This has sparked concerns and backlash from fans and online users. Many are skeptical of the viral post, prompting a fact-check of the claim.
Claim: Spotify removed Ed Sheeran's songs
According to a viral post that surfaced on X, Spotify has reportedly removed Ed Sheeran songs from its platform.
Several accounts shared the post, garnering more than two million views as of this writing and tens of thousands of likes.
The comments show users' concern and shock, with many condemning the music streaming platform for the alleged removal of songs.
Meanwhile, a few others are skeptical, dismissing the claim as false and calling for a fact-check into the viral rumor.
Fact Check: The claim originated as satire
Ed Sheeran attends SiriusXM's Small Stage Series at Irving Plaza on September 24, 2025, in New York City (Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images for SiriusXM)The claim, however, is false, as there is no evidence of the streaming platform making such an extreme move.
Spotify has made no official statements, announcements, or social media posts suggesting it removed Sheeran’s songs.
No official statements or social media announcements from the 35-year-old singer condemn the alleged removal of his songs.
A search on Spotify for the singer shows that his songs still exist on the platform.
A Google search to confirm whether they initially removed his songs and then restored them yielded no credible reports; if true, prominent news and entertainment news outlets would have covered it, sparking controversy and outrage among fans.
Moreover, the claim originated from a popular parody account on X called ‘Hoops Crave,’ which describes itself in the bio as ‘satire’ and has posted several such fake claims for the sake of engagement.
Macklemore removed from Ed Sheeran's tour
The claim surfaced amid the controversy after the rapper Macklemore was removed from the rest of Ed Sheeran’s stadium tour after several venues allegedly said that they would not allow the rapper to perform for making several onstage statements in support of Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank and calling for a “free Palestine.”
“A big part of the reason why I wanted to do this tour in the first place is so I could stand up in stadiums like this and say two words that are very near and dear to my heart: ‘Free Palestine,’” he said.
“I want those words to be loud and clear, so that people all the way in Gaza to the occupied West Bank know that we have not forgotten about them,” he added.
