How Much Money is Enough Money

I just saw a video saying that Ed Sheeran has dropped Macklemore from the remainder of his US Loop Tour following backlash and pressure over Macklemore’s “Free Palestine” remarks on stage. Which sucks. I wish Ed had grown a fucking vagina.Let me simplify, because you may be wondering, why the profanity? Ed Sheeran is worth approximately $400 million. He is not struggling to make rent. He is not wondering where his next meal is coming from. He has reached the point of wealth where losing one opportunity, one tour, or one deal should not fundamentally change his life.Meanwhile, Palestine is fighting not to be erased. Israel is doing its damnedest to erase the Palestinian people. So naturally, you’d think someone like Ed Sheeran, someone with a platform most of us will never touch, would at least share the sentiment.But silence isn’t neutral. Silence is a choice too. And whatever the exact chain of pressure behind this decision was, the result is that Macklemore, a man who publicly said “Free Palestine,” was removed from the tour when his presence became commercially difficult.And need I remind you, again, Ed Sheeran is worth around $400 million. He is set for life. His children are set for life. Even his grandchildren are probably set for life. Which begs the question: when do we know to stop pursuing money?I’ve seen people online shouting “Free Palestine.” People like you and me, middle-class people who have much more to lose without the backing of millions of dollars. Arianna Hamilton, a Burger King employee in Pennsylvania making minimum wage, said “Free Palestine” to a customer and got fired for it. That was a woman with far more tangible reasons to keep her mouth shut, and she spoke anyway.And this is where I start thinking about how obsessed we are with money, particularly here in Nigeria.There’s a popular Burna Boy song that goes:“Dangote, DangoteDangote still dey find money...Who I be?Who I be?Wey make I no go find money?”<img alt="" src="/media/inline_insight_image/1568683.jpg"/>The idea is basically that if Dangote, one of the richest people in Africa, is still looking for money, then who are you to stop hustling?And that kind of thinking is very popular in this country. But not everything a rich person does is right. Just because Dangote is doing it doesn’t mean it is morally correct to hustle endlessly. The fact that he is still trying to make more money, even after accumulating more than most people could spend in several lifetimes, doesn’t mean that is what you have to do too.Because maybe the question isn’t always, “How much more can I make?”Maybe sometimes it should be, “How much is enough?”And it’s not just Ed. It’s not just Dangote. Look around and you’ll see it everywhere: famous people, rich people, people who could disappear from public life tomorrow and never worry about a bill again, still making choices that cost other people something just to protect a bag they will never spend down.At some point, this stops being about survival. Nobody with $400 million is surviving.So maybe, at some point, we need to stop asking how much more money we can make and start asking what we are willing to lose to make it.Because money is supposed to make your life better. It is supposed to buy you safety, comfort, freedom. But what is the point of having enough money to be free if you are still making yourself a prisoner to it?I don't think there is anything wrong with wanting more money. I want more money. You probably do too. I want to be comfortable. I want to be able to take care of the people I love. I want to buy stupidly expensive things sometimes just because I can.But I don't want to become so afraid of losing money that I start losing everything else.My principles. My voice. My ability to look at suffering and say, this is wrong.There has to be a point where we can say, this is enough.And if $400 million isn't enough to let you risk a tour, a deal, or a little bit of money for something you believe is right, then I honestly don't know what ever will be.

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