Oli Sykes Responds to Bigmouth Post About Macklemore: ‘What Happened Is Very Real’

The Bring Me The Horizon frontman shared Bigmouth’s post about the renewed attention surrounding his comments on Palestine, before warning that major conglomerates use their power to keep artists silent.

Oli Sykes has responded directly to a Bigmouth post after an older video of the Bring Me The Horizon frontman discussing Palestine suddenly found a huge new audience.

Bigmouth originally shared the clip in July after Sykes revealed that he had been warned displaying a Palestinian flag onstage could have “career-ending consequences.”

The Reel had reached around 92,000 likes before the recent dispute involving Macklemore and Ed Sheeran’s tour brought thousands of viewers back to the post.

It has since passed 164,000 likes — an increase of more than 72,000 — with the comments once again filling up as the wider conversation surrounding musicians, Palestine and freedom of expression intensified.

After Bigmouth posted about the unexpected resurgence, Sykes shared our update to his Instagram Story and addressed the situation himself.

“U know I don’t say much about anything, but gotta at least say what happened to @macklemore is a very real thing. Huge conglomerates using their power over artists to try n keep em silent by threatening to revoke their livelihoods. It’s what Dehumanized is about.”

Why the Original Oli Sykes Video Resurfaced

The Reel’s second wave of attention closely followed news that Macklemore had been removed from the remaining dates he was due to play as support on Ed Sheeran’s Loop tour.

During appearances at New Jersey’s MetLife Stadium on September 4 and 5, Macklemore used his set to speak about Gaza and the occupied West Bank, told the crowd “Free Palestine” and performed “Hind’s Hall.”

According to reports, venue operators subsequently warned that they would not host later shows if the rapper remained on the bill.

Promoter Messina Touring Group later confirmed that Macklemore had been removed from eight forthcoming dates.

Sheeran said the decision had been made by the promoter rather than by him, adding that he had tried to facilitate discussions between the parties involved. He described himself as “appalled by the conflict,” while explaining that he wanted his concerts to remain a place of safety and sanctuary rather than a political forum.

Against that backdrop, Sykes’ earlier comments began circulating again — and the connection was not difficult for viewers to make.

The Warning Behind ‘Dehumanized’

Sykes has previously connected Bring Me The Horizon’s single “Dehumanized” to the pressure and backlash surrounding the band’s decision to display Palestinian flags during its 2025 Reading and Leeds Festival appearances.

Speaking about the experience earlier this year, he said the band had been warned that the gesture could carry serious consequences for its career.

He also reflected on how people can become conditioned to suppress their humanity when speaking openly may threaten their livelihood.

His latest response makes that connection explicit.

Sykes does not appear to view Macklemore’s removal as an isolated touring dispute. He sees it as part of the same wider system he was confronting when writing “Dehumanized” — one in which commercial power can be used to discourage artists from speaking publicly.

A Post About a Post — With a Serious Point Behind It

There is an admittedly unusual chain to the story: Bigmouth posted Sykes’ original comments, the Reel went viral again, we posted about its renewed popularity, and Sykes then responded to that post.

But beyond the social-media postception, his message is direct.

In Sykes’ view, what happened to Macklemore demonstrates that the threat of professional consequences for political expression is not hypothetical.

The renewed attention surrounding Bigmouth’s original Reel also shows how quickly an older statement can take on fresh relevance when a new controversy brings the same questions back into public view.

For Sykes, the issue is bigger than one artist, one tour or one Instagram post. His response frames the Macklemore dispute as another example of what can happen when political speech collides with the interests of powerful venues, promoters and corporations.