Newcastle has three passions. Football, Brown Ale and their new son, Sam Fender. The singer-songwriter has had the whole city behind him and has done ever since he burst onto the scene in 2018. With three studio albums, sold-out tours and numerous accolades to his name, will Sam Fender once again dominate the indie rock pop scene in 2025?
Who is Sam Fender?
Some may be reading this not knowing who Fender is; potentially thinking he is some long lost ancestor of the Fender music company. Quite the opposite. He is a working class 30 year old from North Shields, just outside of Newcastle, who has made the music industry his own.
Fender has three studio albums to his name and each album has gone to number one in the UK. All three albums have varied in genres and all have their own stamp on them. Yet neither of them drop in quality.
Fender tours with his band and he is incredibly loyal towards his band members. Since 2017 Dean Thompson, Tom Ungerer, Joe Atkinson and Drew Michael have been part of the backing band. The addition of Johnny “Blue Hat” Davis, 2019, Mark Webb, 2021 and Brooke Bentham, 2024, has completed the ensemble.
His influences are cited as Bruce Springsteen, Oasis, The Smiths and The Jam amongst other musical artist from different genres. Fender is acclictic and can play mellow soulful songs to playing high paced rock songs within seconds at one of his gigs.
Fender is a poignant British act and one that has fans across all ages. He is considered one of the best British acts of his generation and one that is expected to go down in the ages.
How Fender’s Previous Albums Rocket Him Into the Stratosphere?
Fender released his EP Dead Boys in 2018 which put him on the map of many people as a breakthrough artist but it was not until the full album Hypersonic Missiles was released in 2019 did he start to gain momentum in the music world. Fender was nominated for Critics’ Choice Award at the Brits and won!
With gigs and festival appearances disrupted by the COVID 19 pandemic, Fender was actually the first artist to play in the UK after restrictions were lifted showing how much people wanted to see the Geordie in action.
In 2021, the eagerly anticipated second album, Seventeen Going Under was released, instantly going to number one and capturing a summer; the song Seventeen Going Under is associated with that summer due to its popularity on TikTok.
In the space of three years, Fender had gone from up-and-coming artist to a full mainstream artist, it was a monumental rise to stardom and one that did affect his mental health; cancelling gig dates in 2022.
With sell out tour after sell out tour and sell out festival appearances after sell out festival appearances many were itching for another album. In 2025 they got one.
People Watching Album Released
At the end of 2024, Fender released the single People Watching and once again captivated the airwaves. Radio stations played it constantly, Spotify was streamed over 37,000,000 times, and fans had Fender fever wanting more from him again.
On 21st February 2025 the album was released and this was a different album to the previous two. Fender’s previous two albums were varied, like his musical influences, but with more of a rock feel to it. However, People Watching is heavily influenced by Springsteen and has a slower feel to it.
Yet, that does not make it a poor album, it just makes it a different album. On first listening, many fans may be wondering where the tracks like Seventeen Going Under or Spice or Will We Talk? are, considering that is where Fender made his name. However, this album is more personal with songs about his grandparents, his hometown, his upbringing, and how he views society.
What Next for Fender?
The year has started perfectly with a number one album, another Brit award and another sell out tour for the album. Alongside this Fender is continuing to the People Watching tour throughout the summer this year across the UK with tickets selling out within seconds for all venues.
His June, he will be playing three nights at his beloved St. James’ Park, the home of Newcaslte United, and the atmosphere is expected to be electric with bestowed Geordies enjoying the chance of seeing the prodigal son return. Tickets might be few and far between but through Ticket-Compare.com there are still many Fender tickets available for the biggest show of the year.
As well as playing at the home of Newcastle United, he will be playing in the capital, where West Ham United play their home games The London Stadium; his biggest show to date.
It is all go for Fender in terms of touring but there are rumours of another album being released at the end of the year or at least at the start of 2026 with a punk feel to it. Fender has made no secret he wants to release a punk album following songs like Spice and Howdon Aldi Death Queue, which have that heavier feel to it.
So the question remains, is 2025 going to be Sam Fender’s year? It is only April and it already is a Fender year.
