Stormzy has come under fire for appearing to delete a Pro-Palestine social media post amid his new collaboration with McDonald’s.
In January it was revealed that the rapper had teamed up with McDonald’s for the UK and Ireland’s first Famous Order meal, which gives fans the chance to buy his favourite menu items and a limited edition merch range.
Following the announcement and the subsequent launch on Wednesday (February 12), Stormzy has been criticised for collaborating with the fast food chain, due to their perceived support of Israel.
The Boycott, Divestment & Sanctions (BDS) movement has supported a global boycott of McDonald’s after franchises in Israel gave out thousands of free meals to Israeli forces following Hamas’ attack on the country on 7 October.
Jeremy Corbyn’s Peace and Justice Project are among those critiquing the partnership, issuing an open letter yesterday (February 13) that asks the rapper to “stand in solidarity with the Palestinian people in their hour of need and respect the BDS committee’s call for a global boycott of McDonald’s by ending his new partnership with them.”
“Dear @stormzy, help us take genocide off the menu…”
We are calling on Stormzy to stand in solidarity with the Palestinian people and respect the @BDSmovement call for a boycott of McDonald’s by ending his new partnership with them.
✍️ Write to him: https://t.co/IX7HIkd8fi pic.twitter.com/FhtgnRffi6
— Peace & Justice Project (@corbyn_project) February 13, 2025
Stormzy has previously been vocal in his support for Palestine, playing at a benefit concert to raise funds for aid in January 2024.
Now, though, some fans have noticed that the rapper has removed a social media post from October 2023 that read: “1. Free Palestine. 2. In the future, if there is ever a clear injustice in the world no matter how big or small, 100 times out of 100 I will always be on the side of the oppressed. Unequivocally. As I always have been.”
He’s come under fire on social media, with one X user saying he “sold out for 9 nuggets”, and another calling the move “a genuine disgrace”.
Stormzy Deleting his Pro Palestine Posts & then Doing ads for McDonalds is a choice.
Mate, you really Didn't need that Cheque.— Michael Walsh (@thatbloodyMikey) February 12, 2025
I can’t lie, it’s deleting the post that says Free Palestine that makes the McDonalds deal far worse. You can argue the deal but deleting the very smallest bit of advocacy you did is nasty work. Stormzy did not need to do that.
— s (@jesuissamii) February 12, 2025
Stormzy is a genuine disgrace. He said “in the future, if there is ever a clear injustice in the world no matter how big or small, 100 times out of 100 I will always be on the side of the oppressed,” then deleted that post and sold out for McDonald’s money. There’s 0 integrity.
— Umir (@umirf1) February 13, 2025
Scumbag @stormzy, for a bit of money that you don’t even need. You deleted this post to do a McDonalds commercial 🐀 #FreePalestine pic.twitter.com/QG5r34zOLR
— Deen (@Deens786) February 12, 2025
Stormzy sold out for 9 nuggets, sorry that’s a Judas move. Free Palestine 🇵🇸pic.twitter.com/YtA1SrxafR
— Michael Morgan (@mikecmorgan) February 14, 2025
It is unclear when the post was removed, and it should be noted that deleting old posts to draw attention to new projects is common practice among artists. Stormzy in particular has previously archived old social media posts to make room for new content.
NME has reached out to representatives for both Stormzy and McDonald’s for comment.
McDonald’s CEO Chris Kempczinski has previously denied that the company has taken sides in the conflict, calling the boycotts “disheartening and ill-founded” and saying they are a result of “misinformation”.
In other news, in November, Stormzy revealed he had once again teamed up with Adidas for the next phase of #Merky Football Careers partnership to launch a new online platform to help Black youth find careers in football.
First established in 2022, the project was built to address racial equity in the football industry and provide opportunities for UK Black Heritage Youth to access jobs in the sector. Since its launch, the movement has added 63 roles to the UK football industry for young people of UK Black Heritage, with 39 roles retained for extended periods.
Before then, the rapper confirmed that the scheme would “broaden its scope and impact by tripling the number of roles available”, and expanded its award-winning publishing imprint #Merky Books by announcing a two-day literature festival.
In 2021, the London grime icon also announced plans to support 30 more students through studies at Cambridge University through his scholarship scheme.
It came as part of a partnership between Stormzy’s #Merky Foundation and the bank HSBC, and saw 10 students per year receive a £20,000 annual scholarship to cover tuition fees and maintenance costs.
He then brought the university initiative back last year too, pledging to fund 36 more black Cambridge students over the next three years.