Sam Fender

Samuel Thomas Fender, born on 25 April 1994, is an English singer, songwriter, and musician from North Shields, England. Recognized for his high tenor voice, Geordie accent, and a musical identity combining traditional American influences with a British rock sensibility, he has gained prominent critical and commercial acclaim. Across his career, Fender has earned notable recognition, receiving five Brit Awards, two Ivor Novello Awards, and a Mercury Prize.

Fender was raised in a working-class musical home in North Shields by his mother Shirley, a nurse, and his father Alan, an electrician and music teacher who also performed locally alongside Fender's older brother, Liam. Fender received his first guitar from his father at age eight and became proficient on the instrument by age ten. During his youth, he attended John Spence Community High School and Whitley Bay High School. His early life involved personal hardships, including family instability, childhood bullying, financial poverty, and exposure to drug issues in his local community.

At age 12, Fender met his friend Dean Thompson and began playing guitar alongside him, debuting in front of an audience at his brother's street performer nights. He started writing songs at age 14 and learned to sing by listening to Jeff Buckley. To help support his mother, Fender worked several jobs during and after high school, including teaching guitar, working in a call centre, and working in a restaurant and pub. At age 18, he was discovered performing at the Low Lights Tavern pub by music manager Owain Davies. After surviving a life-threatening health diagnosis at age 20, Fender refocused his songwriting approach to create more personal material.

In March 2017, Fender independently released his debut single, "Play God," followed by the singles "Friday Fighting" and "Start Again." After signing with Polydor Records in 2018, he released his debut EP, Dead Boys, whose title track regarding male suicide brought him mainstream attention. In 2019, Fender won the Critics' Choice Award at the Brit Awards and released his debut studio album, Hypersonic Missiles, which opened at number one on the UK Albums Chart and achieved Gold certification. This success was accompanied by international touring across North America, Europe, Australia, the UK, and Ireland.

In 2021, Fender released his second studio album, Seventeen Going Under, which also debuted at the summit of the UK Albums Chart and earned nominations for both a Mercury Prize and a Brit Award. He gained distinction as the most awarded performer in the British Rock/Alternative Act category at the Brit Awards, winning the honor in 2022, 2025, and 2026.

Fender released his third studio album, People Watching, which became his third consecutive release to debut atop the UK Albums Chart and earned him the Mercury Prize in October 2025. A re-recorded version of the album's track "Rein Me In," performed as a duet with British soul singer-songwriter Olivia Dean, became Fender's first UK number one single, spent 23 weeks at the top position, and received the 2026 Brit Award for Song of the Year.