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Acclaimed indie rock singer-songwriter
The word “meteoric” suffers from frequent misuse. Either it’s mistakenly applied to bands who struggled for a decade or it’s wielded like a slur, as if near-immediate recognition is worth less than years of playing to five people in rural pubs.
Sam Fender’s rise can only be called meteoric and with no negative connotations. His musical grounding is in his DNA, his talent so blatant that it couldn’t go unnoticed. Born in North Shields in 1996, Fender was spotted as a teenager by Ben Howard’s manager and snapped up.
His 2017 debut single Play God demonstrated a gifted songwriter with more than introspection and young love on his mind and a grounding in the greats, from Bruce Springsteen(Opens in new tab) to Jeff Buckley. Two more well-received singles and Fender was riding a wave of hype all the way to a coveted spot on the BBC’s Sound Of 2018 list (alongside Billie Eilish(Opens in new tab) and Lewis Capaldi(Opens in new tab)) and a deal with Polydor.
Sam Fender’s debut EP Dead Boys landed in 2018, gaining gushing reviews for its title track, which addressed suicide in young men. The following year, he won the Critics’ Choice Award at the BRITs without even having released an album yet.
Said album finally arrived later in 2019 in the shape of Hypersonic Missile. Again, reviews were ecstatic and Fender was invited to open for Neil Young(Opens in new tab) and Bob Dylan (Opens in new tab)at Hyde Park as well as a personal invitation from Elton John to play his AIDS Foundation Academy Awards Party. Elton John(Opens in new tab) joined Fender onstage at the party for a rendition of Fender’s song Will We Talk? Sam Fender’s second album, Seventeen Going Under, followed in 2021.
In 2022, Sam Fender solidified himself as one of the most celebrated and successful British artists of his generation, pulling a huge crowd on the Pyramid Stage at Glastonbury ahead of his own 45,000 sell-out show at London’s Finsbury Park. He also picked up a slew of BRIT, NME, and Ivor Novello Awards, and a first nomination for the prestigious Mercury Prize for his second album.
That same year, Sam Fender announced his first stadium headline show at Newcastle's St. James' Park in the summer of 2023, following in the footsteps of Bruce Springsteen and Bob Dylan, and becomes the first Geordie musician to headline the stadium.
Fender announced his People Watching tour for December 2024. The seven-date run starts in Dublin at the 3Arena and ends at the Utilita Arena in Newcastle, also stopping at Leeds, Manchester, London, Birmingham and Glasgow – with £1 from every ticket sold for the UK dates to be donated to the Music Venue Trust in support of grassroots venues.
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By Coach: Big Green Coach is providing hassle-free and sustainable coach returns.
London Stadium: Travel from Birmingham, Bournemouth, Bristol, Cardiff, Chelmsford, Colchester, Coventry, Ipswich, Newport, Norwich, Reading (Calcot), Reading (Winnersh Triangle), Southampton, Swansea and Swindon.
St James' Park: Travel from Darlington, Durham, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Hull, Lancaster, Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester, Middlesbrough, Preston and York.
Your carbon-neutral coach will arrive at the stadium before the music starts and return to your pick-up location after the show has finished. You won't miss a minute of the action. Guarantee your seat with the UK's largest events travel company from just £35 with Big Green Coach.
This was a night to remember, Sam was himself and blew the stadium filled with over 80.000 people away with his great songs. The sound was also really good in this massive stadium. We were a little disappointed that war on drugs wasn't there, but Sam.. no words really, this is just the beginning and we were there!
sam fender is honestly the best artist of this generation. His stage presence is incredible, every song performed flawlessly. great vibe from the crowd and the band.
Such an amazing night, and Sam Fender was amazing as always. It's not often that you see an act that sounds exactly how they do on the radio, but Sam does!! And it was our first time seeing a concert at London Stadium, so we weren't sure what to expect, but we would definitely go back to see more acts there and recommend it to others. It's so easy to get to with many train and tube links into Stratford Station, and we thought it would take us hours to get home as there were 80,000 people at the concert, all heading to Stratford Station afterwards, but it was so well managed that we were out of the stadium and onto a tube within half an hour. There are also plenty of restaurants, bars and shops within the stadium vicinity, so you can make a day of it if you wish. Highly impressed!!
This was my third Fender concert, I only discovered his music a year ago (shame on me) and I'm hooked. The band are just wonderful, I love Sam's honesty, he tells his fans he's overwhelmed by how big the venue is and how many people are there just to see him and then blows us all away with his performance. The atmosphere in the stadium was amazing, a wide range of ages, there was an elderly gentleman to my left and a young lad of about 10 with his parents in front of me, I'm approaching 55 but feel like a teenager again at Sam's concerts. The venue itself I felt was very well organised, it was easy to navigate around, plenty of toilets and the staff were friendly and helpful, top notch. I can't wait to see Sam & the band again in August, I will remember to bring some tissues though, I cried along with everyone else when Sam sung Remember my name, The Dying Light and Dead Boys and a few more. I absolutely love this young man's music, he is very special and I plan to be going to his concerts when I'm 100!
Excellent show put on by Mr Fender and his band. From start to finish we sang every word. Olivia Dean was very good aswell
Awesome concert, with good support bands. View was poor due to being very high up and speakers in the way of the big screen, which was not big enough for 80,000 people. Location of venue terrible, access poor, catering poor and rediculous prices, £10 for a portion of uncooked chips. Exit back to stations abismal.
Wow, what a gig it was !!! Absolutely loved watching Sam Fender, can't wait to try & catch him again at some point, my wife loved the Gig too, although she suffered with walking up the stairs as she has stage 5 kidney Disease but overall we both Absolutely Loved the concert & the venue 🤘
Sam was bringing, the fireworks were brilliant at the end.
Amazing gig by Sam Fender, great songs, decent sound quality even though we were sat right at the far end of the stadium. They had clearly not prepared the catering/bars for the demand of an 80000 strong crowd though; ridiculous queues and lots of the bars selling out of beer and cider before the headline act even started.
As one of Sam Fender's older fans aged 69, I've been following his journey ever since I first heard Seventeen Going Under a few years ago. Even then, it was clear he possessed an extraordinary talent-rare for someone so young. His songwriting, musicianship, and unmistakable voice immediately reminded me of a young Bruce Springsteen. I didn't hesitate to buy his albums (yes, I still prefer physical copies-vinyl and CD alike). So when I found out that his People Watching Tour included a stop in London, I snapped up tickets without a second thought. The entire night exceeded every expectation. The opening acts-CMAT and Olivia Dean-set the tone beautifully with strong performances, but when Sam and his band took the stage, the energy in the venue shifted completely. The production was stunning: a massive widescreen displaying expertly mixed visuals, bursts of pyrotechnics, and a flawless live sound that elevated every moment. Sam delivered a phenomenal set, both powerful and intimate, supported by a tight and passionate band. It wasn't just a concert-it was an experience. One I'll never forget.
