AusLeisure

Amid controversy, American artist Macklemore sang in support of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex people (LGBTI) rights at last night’s NRL Grand Final.

Cast in the middle of debate in relation to Australia's vote on same-sex marriage, the singer performed a set prior kick-off at rugby league’s showpiece event at Sydney’s ANZ Stadium

While opponents had called for the song Same Love to be left out of the show to stop the event becoming "politicised", Macklemore said it "was one of the greatest honours of my career".

Seattle native Macklemore - whose real name is Benjamin Haggerty - had previously told Channel Nine he would donate his portion of the proceeds from the song's sales in Australia to the ‘Yes’ campaign.

The song, with lyrics including "I might not be the same, but that's not important / No freedom 'til we're equal / Damn right I support it" has hit the top of Australia's charts on the iTunes digital music store.

A petition asking the NRL to ban what it called an ‘LGBTIQ anthem’, started by former rugby league player Tony Wall, gathered thousands of signatures in the lead-up to the final.

Former Prime Minister Tony Abbott was among those calling for the song - one of Macklemore's biggest hits - to be excluded.

But the song, accompanied by rainbow pyrotechnics, was the centrepiece of his set in front of final spectators and was televised around the world.

While the music played, the stadium's large screens displayed the NRL logo with the message: "We stand for equality."

The postal ballot runs for two months, ending on 7th November. Opinion polls have suggested a majority of Australians support same-sex marriage.

After Macklemore's performance ended, Melbourne Storm defeated their rivals the North Queensland Cowboys 34-6. 

Images courtesy of Arthur Stanley/Facebook.

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