Sam Fender cancels Glasgow and Newcastle shows after haemorrhaging his vocal chord
Sam Fender has cancelled his upcoming shows in Newcastle and Glasgow after haemorrhaging his vocal chord on tour.
Following the announcement of his third album, People Watching, last month and the release of two singles, Fender has taken his new songs on the road throughout December. Over the last few weeks, he has been dominating arenas around the UK and Ireland, including a pair of sold-out shows at both London’s O2 Arena and Manchester’s Co-op Live.
Unfortunately for fans planning to attend his shows at the Hydro in Glasgow (December 17th) and the Utilita Arena in Newcastle (December 20th), Fender has had to cancel the last two gigs of his tour due to haemorrhaging his vocal chord.
In a statement, the singer-songwriter revealed he had been battling a cold for the past few days, and his voice is now in a state where he has received medical advice to stop performing for a prolonged period.
“Glasgow and Newcastle, as most of you know I’ve had the flu for a few days now,” he wrote in a social media post, “Regardless of how compromised my voice was I did everything I could to get it in working order last night to put on the best show possible. Today I’ve had an ENT scope/camera down my throat and sadly I’ve haemorrhaged my right vocal chord, I’m absolutely heartbroken.”
Fender said that despite his desire, he is under strict medical advice not to do so because it could cause severe damage. “This has been the best tour so far and all I want to do is get up and sing again for you all tonight,” he said, “I’ve had two separate ENT doctors say if I perform tonight I’m risking lasting damage to my voice and I have been advised to be on vocal rest and not use my voice for a prolonged length of time until it heals.”
The Geordie explained that he’s been living cleanly while on tour to protect his voice, but that’s still not been enough to prevent him from picking up an illness. “I’ve done everything by the book this tour living like a monk, it’s so unlucky,” he said, “I’m so, so sorry to all of you who are on your way tonight.”
Fender has said he intends to reschedule the cancelled dates, but no concrete plans have been confirmed yet.
In a review of his recent show at the O2 Arena, Far Out wrote: “As Fender roars into his second song, ‘Getting Started’, my eye is caught by two small fists raised behind me. A ten-year-old girl with huge pink ear protectors is smiling so hard that her whole face is glowing even redder under the red-toned lighting. For the entire show, Fender’s voice merges with a refrain of hers.”
Sam Fender’s new album ‘People Watching’
After months of teasing new music, Fender confirmed in November that he would be releasing a new album, People Watching. The news came with the release of the titular track, which has been met with acclaim from critics and fans alike. The album will be released on February 21st, 2025.
Fender teamed up with The War On Drugs mastermind Adam Granduciel on the new record, who contributed towards several of the tracks. “Sam and the boys came out in March for about five weeks. We worked on some stuff they’d already started, then we worked on some more stuff from the ground up. It was awesome,” said Granduciel to Guitar.com, “I’d never met Sam, but we’d communicated once or twice […] I fell in love with him. He’s a savant. Which I wasn’t really prepared for. I didn’t realise how much of a musical savant he was.”
Next summer, Fender is set to return to the road for three sold-out shows at St James’ Park in Newcastle and a headline performance at the London Stadium. The War on Drugs and CMAT are set to support.
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