Sam Fender cancels more gigs as health issues worsen

Poorly Sam Fender has pulled out of some of his European festival dates after suffering another vocal cord haemorrhage.

The musician, who recently played in front of a total of 150,000 people at three sold-out concerts inside St James' Park, Newcastle, posted a lengthy statement on his Instagram story explaining the decision. The 31-year-old has been told by his ears, nose and throat doctor that he has a haemorrhage .

He has been advised not to sing for the next two weeks to prevent “lasting damage to [his] vocal cords”. Telling fans the bad news, he said: "Hey everyone, at the beginning of the week I got my voice checked by my ENT doctor and the cords were slightly swollen.

“After a few days rest I was advised by my team that I was okay to perform. On stage at Silverstone I could feel that things were a lot harder than usual, I felt I needed to push a lot harder to sing – this is never a good sign. I’ve just been checked by my ENT again today, as I was concerned about it, and it’s transpired that I’ve had a haemorrhage on one of my vocal cords.

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“I’ve been advised to be on vocal restriction and to not sing for the next 14 days,” he added. "If I were to play at these next shows I would risk causing lasting damage to my vocal cords. This means I cannot perform at the upcoming Rock Werchter, Down the Rabbit Hole, NOS Alive, and Montreux Jazz Festivals.

“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.”

The Hypersonic Missiles singer was forced to cancel a number of gigs on his 2024 tour after suffering a similar injury to his vocal cords. Sam has been on a stadium tour this summer in support of his third studio album People Watching which included dates at the London Stadium and St James’ Park, the home of his beloved Premier League team Newcastle United.

Earlier this year, Sam was named Best Alternative / Rock Act at the BRIT Awards where he performed his single People Watching with his band.

Sam previously spoke openly about taking time off to prioritise his wellbeing. In 2022, he cancelled several performances, citing "burnout" from touring. At the time, he explained that it would be "hypocritical" to continue working while neglecting his own mental health.

In a statement released in September 2022, he said: "It seems completely hypocritical of me to advocate discussion on mental health and write songs about it if I don't take time to look after my own mental health. I've neglected myself for over a year now and haven't dealt with things that have deeply affected me.

"It's impossible to do this work on myself while on the road, and it's exhausting feigning happiness and wellness for the sake of business. My friends and colleagues have been worried about me for a while and it's not going to get better unless I take the time to do so." He later explained he was beyond grateful to his fans for understanding before adding: "Me and the boys are burnt out and we need this time."

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