Sam Fender Halts Performances After Vocal Cord Injury

Sam Fender has pulled the brakes on his summer festival run after suffering a vocal cord haemorrhage — a rare but serious injury that’s left him unable to sing for the next two weeks.

The news comes just days after his set at the British Grand Prix at Silverstone. On Instagram, Fender explained,

“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.”

But by the time he hit the stage, he knew something was off.

“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.”

The timing couldn’t be worse. Fender is in the middle of a career-defining summer — playing to 80,000 at London Stadium and headlining three sold-out nights at Newcastle’s St James’ Park. Still, he’s been ordered into full vocal rest.

“This is incredibly frustrating as I have been so careful with my vocal health and this year so far has been the best of my career,” he wrote. “I’ve been advised to be on vocal restriction and to not sing for the next 14 days.”

He’s now cancelled his appearances at Rock Werchter, Down The Rabbit Hole, NOS Alive, and Montreux Jazz Festival. There’s no dramatic plea for sympathy, just realism:

“If I were to play at these next shows I would risk causing lasting damage to my vocal cords.”

Fender admits he’s taking it hard.

“I hate letting people down,” he said. “I also hate not being able to sing for weeks as it is my only real passion in life.”

He signed off with a promise:

“I hope that I’m able to make it up to you down the line, but until then I’m gonna work to get this voice fixed. Love from me and the band.”

While fans wait, he leaves behind a summer already filled with big moments — and the recently released version of Rein Me In featuring Olivia Dean. For now, the voice that cut through stadium noise has been told to rest.