Mark Knopfler believes “wonderful” Sam Fender is “the real thing”
Speaking exclusively to Far Out, former Dire Straits frontman Mark Knopfler has heaped praise upon a fellow local hero of the North East, labelling Sam Fender as “the real thing”.
Despite only having two albums to his name, Fender has already become a certified festival headliner, who also played two sold-out shows at Newcastle United’s stadium St. James’ Park in 2023. Notably, during the latter of the homecoming concerts, he was joined by AC/DC frontman Brian Johnson, who Knopfler has teamed up with for the new series, Johnson and Knopfler’s Music Legends, on Sky Arts.
The six-part series begins on April 25th, and over the course of the upcoming episodes, they talk to icons including Tom Jones, Cyndi Lauper, and Carlos Santana. While he’s yet to achieve legendary status, Fender is also the subject of the programme with Knopfler believing he’s on course to cement his place in the history books.
Fender, who is currently working on his third album, already has two number one LPs to his name and as long as he continues on the same trajectory, the singer-songwriter is a Glastonbury headliner in-waiting. His heart-on-the-sleeve anthems have made him a star, and also won him two famous fans, who have previously been in his current situation.
“So, if you’re talking about seeing someone early like Sam Fender, something tells you that you’re obviously dealing with the real thing,” Knopfler told Far Out in an exclusive interview alongside Johnson.
Elaborating further, Knopfler added: “Sam [Fender] is just going to be huge. Sam’s wonderful. Brian and I both think he’s great, and he’s gonna go a long way, if he takes care of himself.”
However, as a veteran of the music business who has seen countless talented artists not fill their potential, Knopfler noted with an aura of caution, “And if the gods of music take care of him, or the gods of the music business, take care of him.”
“I mean, it’s not a done deal. There’s a long way to go in terms of survival. I literally do mean that. I think Brian and I would both agree that if we’d been 18 years old when we cracked it, neither of us would be alive right now,” Knopfler continued with a stern sense of sincerity. “It’s a serious business.”
Meanwhile, Knopfler recently appeared on Shaun Keaveny’s Daily Grind podcast, and discussed his childhood love of Elvis Presley, declaring him as the “total rockstar”.
He told the former BBC 6 Music host: “In many respects, thinking about it, the movies were a bigger draw to American rockers weren’t they, when they were on the charts when they were kids because Elvis wanted to be James Dean and Marlon Brando.”
The singer-songwriter continued: “I remember being surprised when I heard that Elvis wanted to be a movie star, I was kind of disappointed because, to me, he was the total rockstar.”
Never Miss A Beat
The Far Out Music Newsletter
All the latest music news from the independent voice of culture.
Straight to your inbox.