Another day, another boycott. British rapper Stormzy, also known as Michael Ebenezer Kwadjo Omari Owuo Jr., is currently facing backlash for working with McDonald’s to create his own custom meal. The reason? The fast food giant is currently being subjected to boycotts due to its alleged support for Israel during the war in Gaza. And to make matters worse, netizens also took note of Stormzy deleting an Instagram post in support of the Palestinian state, intensifying the scrutiny he is under. Here are the most recent updates on this unfolding scandal.

On 12 February 2025, the 30-year-old ‘Vossi Bop’ singer unveiled his new limited edition McDonald’s meal aptly titled: ‘The Stormzy Meal’. It is intended to replicate the rapper’s favourite order at the chain: nine chicken nuggets, fries, BBQ sauce, Sprite and an Oreo McFlurry.

This announcement led to some backlash from Stormzy’s dedicated following because of McDonald’s support for Israel. The rapper was accused of hypocrisy and “selling out for chicken nuggets,” as a consequence.

Stormzy sold out for 9 nuggets, sorry that’s a Judas move. Free Palestine 🇵🇸pic.twitter.com/YtA1SrxafR

— Michael Morgan (@mikecmorgan) February 14, 2025

Stormzy called his nutritionist to ask for permission to drink Mel’s Maple Matcha ….. and he’s collabing with ……. Ok pic.twitter.com/c2Gk04v9Ra

— Prinny LaGirl (@PrinnyRae) February 13, 2025

When it was discovered that Stormzy had also removed his posts in support of the Palestinian people, the criticism worsened, with many deciding to ‘cancel’ the rapper.

The post in question had been captioned: “I hope everyone is good, some fleeting thoughts. 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.” It is unclear when the rapper deleted the post in relation to his McDonald’s collaboration.

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

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

In case you are unaware, McDonald’s has found itself at the centre of controversy (and subsequent boycott) after a chain in Israel gave out thousands of free meals to Israeli forces and citizens following Hamas’ attack on Israel on 7 October. Of course, the purveyor of Happy Meals defended itself, highlighting that a majority of McDonald’s restaurants operate independently and that the decision to serve IDF soldiers was not a cohesive corporation decision.

Still, to a lot of Pro-Palestinian protesters, the damage was done.

The next thing the company knew, it was recording a “negative impact” in its Middle East operations.

Upon discovering this, McDonald’s CEO Chris Kempczinski denied that the company had taken sides in the conflict, calling the boycotts “disheartening and ill-founded.”

Still, even prominent figures like MP Jeremy Corbyn favoured action against the fast food chain and called on Stormzy to end his collaboration with the company.

As of 14 February, the rapper hasn’t commented on the backlash.