Latest news with #SeventeenGoingUnder
Metro
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Metro
Sam Fender forced to cancel string of gigs due to 'frustrating' health issue
Geordie superstar Sam Fender has announced a 14-day break from performing due to a new health scare. In a social media post on Friday, the 31-year-old singer told his followers that his vocal cords were checked over by his ENT doctor earlier in the week. Although they were 'slightly swollen' the Seventeen Going Under hitmaker was told he would be okay to carry on playing his shows. During his headline act opening the British Grand Prix at Silverstone on Thursday evening, the chart-topper had put on an incredible show, singing his big hits and a few songs from his new album, People Watching to F1 fans. He continued: 'I felt I needed I had to push a lot harder to sing – this is never a good sign.' He went on to break the devastating news that, after another ENT checkup, he had a haemorrhage on one of his vocal cords, forcing him to cancel several upcoming gigs. This includes his performances at Roch Werchter, Down the Rabbit Hole, NOS Live and Montreux Jazz Festivals. The music artist explained that if was to sing he could risk 'lasting damage' to his vocal cords. 'This is incredibly frustrating as I have been so careful with my vocal health and this year so far has been the best of my career.' Obviously devastated, Sam added: 'I'm so sorry to everyone who is coming to those festivals with our show in mind,' 'Our fans are the most important thing to us, I hate letting people down and I hate not being able to sing for weeks as it is my only real passion in life,' he added. For the eighth year, 150,000 festival goers will descend on Glasgow Green from 11-13 July to see the liked of 50 Cent, Gracie Abrams and Biffy Clyro, and you could be there! Metro has teamed up with Rockstar Energy presents TRNSMT Festival to offer four VIP tickets to one lucky winner. For a chance to win this massive music prize, simply enter your details here. You have until midnight on Sunday 6 July 2025 to enter using the form below. Entrants must be 18+. Good luck! T&Cs apply*. Click here if form is not loading. * Open to legal residents of Great Britain (excluding Northern Ireland) aged 18 or over. Promotion opens at 18:01 BST on 2 July 2025 and closes at 23:59 BST on 6 July 2025. The promotion is free to enter; however internet access is required. Entrant must visit and when prompted by the form, submit their name, email, telephone number, date of birth and postcode. Acceptance of the terms and conditions is necessary to enter the promotion. There will be one (1) winner. The winner will win four (4) VIP weekend tickets for TRNSMT Festival, running from 11th – 13th July 2025 at Glasgow Green, in Glasgow ('Prize'). Proof of age and photographic ID are required for entry for all guests (the guests of the winner must be at least 16 years old at the time of entry). The Prize, including entry and attendance at TRSNMT festival, is subject to and governed by the Promoter's full ticket terms and conditions. 1 prize available. 1 entry per person. Full T&Cs apply, see here. This is not Sam's first health scare, the singer has been very open about his previous mental and physical issues. Sam has been very transparent about his previous mental health struggles, especially through Covid – and has been praised by many for rising above toxic masculinity and being a great role model by speaking out. The People Watching star has also suffered physical health problems: respiratory infections, laryngitis, and tonsillitis – which resulted in him having to cancel shows over the years. Fans were gutted Sam did not appear at Glastonbury this year after rampant rumours suggesting he would play a secret set. The fan-favourite singer released his third studio album, People Watching, in February of this year. Sam has since begun his People Watching tour, selling out huge venues like the London Stadium and his very own stomping ground, St James Park. His tour has got lots of media attention, especially on TikTok, making his fan base grow rapidly. Olivia Dean was his chosen support act and he actually brought her out on stage to sing 'Rein Me In' back in June at London Stadium. The pair have since joined forces to release the duet which has over 4 million streams on Spotify, after only two weeks of it being out. More Trending The South Shields-born hit-maker isn't the only singer who has had to take a step back from performing due to vocal cord issues. John Bon Jovi, 61, recently underwent surgery on his vocal cords – one of the cords was ' literally atrophied' and Bon Jovi found a surgeon who was willing to use a transplant to build it back up. Similarly to Sam, Kesha rocked out so hard on stage at the Taylor Hawkins tribute concert that she haemorrhaged her vocal cords. Sir Tom Jones has also spoken out about his struggles with controlling his voice as he ages 'The older you get, the less control you have over your vocal cords.' Got a story? If you've got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the entertainment team by emailing us celebtips@ calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we'd love to hear from you. MORE: Sam Fender is a rare solution to the fight against toxic masculinity
ITV News
02-07-2025
- Entertainment
- ITV News
Sam Fender's People Watching is the biggest selling album released this year
Sam Fender's People Watching is the biggest-selling album released this year, the Official Charts Company has confirmed. People Watching became the singer-songwriter's third number one album when it came out in February, with sales soaring as the North Shields-born singer played a series of sold-out shows last month. The Official Charts Company announced his latest success on Wednesday (2 July), confirming is had reached 120,000 pure sales, and was also the most popular physical album released this year - with 115,000 sales. Fender has just recently finished a trio of sold-out gigs at St James' Park in Newcastle, where he brought out a local mining band each night to play with him on stage. The Easington Colliery Band from County Durham performed Fender's song Remember My Name - a tribute to his late grandparents - to the packed audiences at the stadium in June. The band had recorded the song with Fender for the album back in 2024. They told ITV Tyne Tees after its release that recording the song had been a "surreal" experience. Fender has enjoyed a run off success since releasing his debut album Hypersonic Missiles in 2019, followed two years later by Seventeen Going Under.
Metro
17-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Metro
Sam Fender is a rare solution to the fight against toxic masculinity
Newcastle's St James' Park was a sea of black and white this weekend. But this time, flags were not waving for Eddie Howe's Toon Army, but a 30-year-old lad from North Shields called Sam Fender, who by now, everyone – even Southerners – have heard of. Fender is nothing short of a local hero. No other artist has the ability to galvanise a whole city into uniformed celebration like Fender does with Newcastle. More importantly, though: he's making boys cry. In the crowd on Thursday's opening night of the Seventeen Going Under hitmaker's homecoming weekend, I rolled my eyes on seeing we had landed next to a group of teenage boys who were probably the most drunk they'd ever been. There was no escape, as they flung themselves around, pissing on the ground to dodge the queues (which were 100,000x worse for women, by the way), and slobbering as they swayed. Harmless kids, I knew, when I heard one tell the other off for swearing – 'There's kids here!' – before, in classic Geordie style, a bald man informed them, 'You are the kids!' as a chuckle of appreciation spread to those nearby. To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video But understanding turned into tenderness for these lost, foolish boys, when Spit of You rang around the arena, and a thundering chorus of bass, tenor and alto voices joined in. It's a song about boys and their dads. 'I can talk to anyone, I can't talk to you,' boomed throughout the arena, and these boys sobbed. 'Come here ya dafty,' said one, hugging his friend, who at this point was inconsolable. It was refreshing – and surprising – to see young boys embracing each other and pouring their hearts out like us girls have done for so many years. While we'll never know what in their own lives triggered this overflow of emotion, Fender has clearly found the male heartstring with his guitar pick. He does it time and time again with his lyrics, in Seventeen Going Under when he talks of his younger self 'spiralling in silence', in Dead Boys, and The Borders. Other male musicians have shown their emotions, sure – with Lewis Capaldi opening up about his mental health and Robbie Williams getting real with fans in tender documentaries and heartfelt films. Ed Sheeran is also a young Brit being real about his feelings. But, let's face it: Robbie is for the women more than the men. Lewis Capaldi and Ed are for both. Here's the difference: while many women enjoy Fender, his most evocative songs are speaking largely to men. They desperately need this. And he knows it: Fender embraces his role as defacto mouthpiece for forgotten working class boys. This became clear in his recent interview with The Times, in which he discussed the topic of toxic masculinity, while many famous men would go wide-eyed and quiet at the topic. In it, Fender sparked controversy by saying this country's failure to examine class as a privilege, like we do with white, male and straight privilege, is leading these impressionable young boys to 'demagogues like Andrew Tate'. The People Watching hitmaker emphasised that 'white boys from nowhere towns' are being fed a 'narrative' where they're 'being shamed all the time and made to feel like they're a problem'. 'People preach to some kid in a pit town in Durham who's got f*** all and tell him he's privileged? Then Tate tells him he's worth something? It's seductive,' he said. It's a sweeping statement: it's problematic to assume boys are being pulled like a lifeless rope in a tug of war between sensible discussions about privilege and raging misogyny. They can think, after all. It is also uncomfortable to think of Fender showing Johnny Depp the bright lights of Newcastle off the back of his ugly defamation trial with Amber Heard (while Depp was cleared in the US of allegations of domestic abuse, he was not in UK courts two years prior). So no: Fender is by no means a perfect role model. He's entirely imperfect. But he's trying – and he's also right. Working class boys in the North are victims of governmental neglect. They are victims of British classism, just like their sisters. More Trending The difference is that while teenage girls of any class can furiously bond through tears, Taylor Swift lyrics, and late night sleepover chats in often deeply open friendships, the emotional weight of a teenage boy is carried mostly by him. I hope this is changing. But it's worth remembering that while these 'white boys from nowhere towns' are more privileged than their sisters, they are also more alone. If Sam Fender can make boys feel, share, cry and hug like those teenage lads did on Thursday night, we must applaud him. By doing so, he is one of the most important artists of a generation, not just for boys, but for girls too. Got a story? If you've got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the entertainment team by emailing us celebtips@ calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we'd love to hear from you. MORE: Liverpool target £45m Newcastle United star after agreeing Florian Wirtz deal MORE: Jack Grealish posts update after being axed from Man City Club World Cup squad MORE: Joao Pedro's teammate drops bombshell over summer transfer after Chelsea interest
Yahoo
03-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Sam Fender brings People Watching Tour to London - What you need to know
London Stadium will be rocking this weekend as musician Sam Fender performs his biggest headline show to date. The 'Seventeen Going Under' artist is bringing his People Watching Tour to London following his recent tour and headline slot at BBC Radio 1 Big Weekend in Liverpool. Fender's show at the London Stadium will have a capacity of 79,999, making it his biggest stadium show outside of Newcastle. The North Shields singer has performed at his home city stadium, St James' Park, three times and is returning for two sold-out shows in June. But, before the 'Spit of You' artist returns to St James' Park, fans who were lucky enough to get tickets will be seeing him at the London Stadium. If you were one of those fans, we have all you need to know from timings, setlist, bag policy, support acts and more. Sam Fender will be performing at the London Stadium for one night only on Friday, June 6. If you have tickets to see the 'Hypersonic Missiles' singer, you can head down to the stadium at 5pm when the doors open. Two guests at the London Stadium will join Sam Fender, Olivia Dean and CMAT. Olivia Dean is best known for her hits including 'Dive', 'Ok Love You Bye' and her recent lead single for the new Bridget Jones film 'It Isn't Perfect But it Might Be'. CMAT will also be joining Fender, and is known for songs 'Stay for Something', 'I wanna be a cowboy', and recent TikTok hit 'Take A Sexy Picture Of Me'. Set times have not yet been officially confirmed, however, it's expected that Sam Fender will take to the stage between 7.30pm and 8.30pm. Tickets for Sam were in high demand when they went on sale, and at the time of writing, you can only buy verified resale via Ticketmaster. Recommended Reading Robbie Williams to rock Emirates Stadium: Everything you need to know Got tickets to Beyoncé? See the full setlist for the Cowboy Carter tour Legendary rock band confirm Wembley 2025 show - How to get tickets According to the average setlist for the People Watching tour is as follows: Dead Boys Getting Started Arm's Length Crumbling Empire People Watching Will We Talk? Tyrants Nostalgia's Lie The Borders Howdon Aldi Death Queue Spit of You Little Bit Closer Seventeen Going Under Something Heavy Hypersonic Missiles All bags at the London Stadium must be no larger than A4, and all bags will be searched upon entry.
Sydney Morning Herald
29-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Sydney Morning Herald
Sam Fender doesn't want to be your working-class hero
I've annoyed Sam Fender. I've quoted his own lyrics at him, from TV Dinner, a standout on his new album People Watching – 'Hypothesise a hero's rise and teach them all to then despise/It is our way to make a king, romanticise how they begin/Fetishise their struggling, while all the while they're suffering' – and asked him if he feels his working-class story has been uncomfortably commodified by the industry machine. Suddenly, he's fearing some sort of tabloid ambush. 'I mean… I don't know,' he says. A long silence ensues, then eventually: 'I don't really want to make a f---ing headline about me being like 'oh, I've felt exploited' because I'm happy doing what I'm doing. But I also think… Hang on, give us a second... What's this for anyway? Who do you write for?' In the UK, Fender has been Britpop's chosen son since 2021, when Seventeen Going Under marked his viral breakthrough. A stirring anthem of proletarian disillusionment, the song recalled Fender's youth growing up below the poverty line in the council estates of North Shields, a shipyard town near Newcastle; it also seethed at the struggle his mum, a nurse forced out of work due to fibromyalgia, endured at the hands of bureaucratic indifference ('I see my mother/The DWP see a number' he sang). It led Fender to a prestigious Ivor Novello win for best song, and album of the year nods in the Mercury Prize and Brit Awards. This February, he released the long-awaited follow-up People Watching, which added a War On Drugs-esque chug to Fender's signature Bruce Springsteen-via-The Killers sound, thanks to production from Adam Granduciel (a Fender hero), and the skyward trajectory continued. At home, where he's now the sort of pop star who breaks chart records set by Harry Styles, has Elton John on speed-dial, and can secure celebrities like Andrew Scott and Adolescence star Owen Cooper for his music videos, Fender's also become a de facto spokesman for the working class. In interviews, he gets questions that set him railing against wealth disparity, the left's abandonment of the underclass, and the structures that make a music career inaccessible to anyone not from private-school privilege. He's the sort of pop star who earns glowing write-ups in the NME and the World Socialist Website. Media have christened him 'Geordie Springsteen', a descriptor both illustrative and pejorative depending on who wields it. If uninvited, it's hard to avoid when your songs feature lines like: 'My old man worked on the rail yard/Betting his trade on the electrical bars/It got privatised, the work degraded/In this crumbling empire' (from People Watching 's Crumbling Empire). Three albums in, though, it's become a nuisance to his art. It's perhaps understandable then, that when a writer starts whiffing around his politics in an interview, Fender's haunches go up. Does he get criticism for talking openly about politics? 'I mean, yeah, do you?' Fender replies. Well no, nobody cares about a thing I say, and I have the analytics to prove it. Has he had bad experiences with the press over it? 'O'course I have, all you've gotta do is Google my name and find all the things that look salacious. I could tick them all off for you,' he says. Does he feel pressure to be a voice for the working class? Fender laughs heartily and I've set him off. 'No, I don't… Ah f---, I don't know. Sorry, I guess I'm battling with that myself at the moment,' he says. 'People bandy around these f---ing sayings – 'voice of the working class', 'voice of a generation' – I hear this f---ing shit all the time and it's ridiculous. I'm not f---ing Bob Dylan. I'm not Bruce Springsteen. I'm Sam Fender. All I'm doing is me f---ing songs, writing about my lived experience, the people I know and what's going on in me hometown. It's just a couple of good tunes, that's all and nothing more.' You can sense the frustration of a young artist trapped in a persona foisted upon them. Or, at the very least, the pressure of expectation from a culture craving their next rock 'n' roll saviour. Right now, Fender doesn't want the job. 'Half the songs I've released I can't f---ing stand because I wrote them when I was a kid!' he says. 'They're not 'songs of a generation' and I'm not 'the next Bruce Springsteen'. I'm just a kid – well, a f---ing 31-year-old man – who's writing songs! I just don't feel comfortable when anybody brings in 'working-class hero'. It doesn't have to have that weight. I'm sorry, I'm probably not in the best state to be doing this interview. Probably gonna brutalise us in the print, hey?' Fender's drinking beers in the back of a pub in North London when we Zoom, enjoying some rare downtime between tours and, significantly, off the back of a jaunt to break America that included a slot at Coachella and high-profile press in publications like the Los Angeles Times ('At home he's a hero. Is America next for Sam Fender?' went that headline). 'I want to break America, who doesn't? That's your f---ing life sorted if it works. But I told my manager we need to make sure we're looking after the territories that have supported us so far,' says Fender, whose arena tour hits Australia in November. 'We'll go to America and we'll lose a lot of money, but Australia is blowing up for us right now so of course we're coming to Australia. That's where the fans are, and it's a big amount of people. It's happening there, so let's go.' The States should be simple enough, I tell him. Jump on a tour with, say, Zach Bryan, a simpatico heartland rocker, and hit those endless small towns where fans can't help but empathise with Fender's hard-won story. The people will eat it up. Look at me, I add, talking like I know what I'm on about. 'Sure, maybe you should f---ing manage us,' Fender jibes. In the meantime, he's focused on writing. He's already begun work on album number four, which is, I remind him, traditionally the 'artist's album'. At this point, you take no notes. 'It's funny you say that because I literally said, I am going to make this album and no c---'s gonna f---ing hear it 'til it's done. Once it's done, they can have it and if it sells, it sells. If it doesn't, I don't care.' Loading He's torn between two intriguing angles. 'There's some stuff I've been making that's a little more thrashy, a bit more Replacements. And then some stuff that's really stripped back, just pure folk songs. We'll see what happens. But it's going to be a vinyl with 10 f----ing songs on it and if people like it, then that's wonderful and if they don't, then fine. But it will be what I want.' In the midst of such chaos, this working-class hero has surely earned the right.
