Last night, I was lucky enough to attend Sam Fender's 'sold oot' show at Newcastle's Utilita Arena. The North Shields-born superstar seems to have the world at his feet right now with both critical and commercial success from his latest album and a string of awards.
As a self-confessed Sam Fender fanatic (or Fenderatic?) I had high hopes for this gig. And let me tell you, he did not disappoint. The local legend rocked 11,000 Geordies who came out in their droves to see the 'Seventeen Going Under' star remind everyone why he's the current king of the North.
There were some celebrity guests in the attendance as well with NUFC stars Dan Burn and Kieran Trippier spotted in the audience. Actor Robson Green, who starred in the music video for 'Howdon Aldi Death Queue', was also there.
Read more: In pictures: Local Hero Sam Fender rocks 11,000 fellow Geordies at Newcastle's Utilita Arena
The anticipation in the room was palpable before Fender came out and the audience was practically fizzing with excitement. He finally arrived on stage to a tidal wave of applause from the ecstatic crowd. Upon chants of 'Toon! Toon!' and the waving of NUFC flags, the multiple BRIT Award winner came out being serenaded to 'Local Hero' by saxophonist Johnny Blue Hat.
He started the night with the belter 'Will We Talk?' which got the crowd going. Fender seemed to be buzzing to be back on home turf and performing for a local audience who clearly matched his energy.
The Geordie boy performed a mix of his latest album as well as some of his greatest hits from his first. It's such a fantastic experience seeing an act with such a loyal legion of fans who clearly connect with the artist and his music.
The chemistry Fender has with his band is also always great to watch and you can tell that Sam, Dean, Drew, Joe, Johnny and Tom are up there having the time of their lives.
The vibes were absolutely immaculate when Fender performed my personal favourite 'The Borders'. Other highlights included the hit 'Spice' which is always a guaranteed crowd pleaser and one that gets rowdy.
Nonetheless, throughout the night, Fender paused the show to ensure that the audience was safe. Following the tragedy at Astroworld last year, it's great to see more and more performers keeping an eye on the crowd and taking security seriously. At one point, he asked those who were standing at the front to take a step back to make sure that someone in the crown got the space they needed to get out the crowd.
One of Fender's biggest songs at the moment is the titular 'Seventeen Going Under'. The smash went viral on TikTok and has gathered over 76 million streams on Spotify. It was quite something to hear over 10,000 Geordies belt out probably the most iconic lyric from the song, ('I was far too scared to hit him, but I would hit him in a heartbeat now'), at the top of their voices.
A big shout out to the person next to me who let me go on their shoulders for 'The Dying Light' as when the all the confetti canon went off at the end, the moment can only be described as euphoric. The night ended with one of Fender's biggest tunes 'Hypersonic Missiles' which the crowd went absolutely mad for.
The Geordie legend ended the night with a show of solidarity with the people of Ukraine. The screens on stage displayed the Ukrainian flag along with the phrase 'United with Ukraine'.
An absolutely world-class act and a brilliant performer, Sam Fender, come and collect your crown.
