Sam Fender joins lineup of BRIT Awards performers
He joins the likes of Dave, Ed Sheeran and Liam Gallagher
By Joe Goggins
Sam Fender has joined the lineup of live performers at next week’s BRIT Awards.
The Newcastle singer-songwriter will make his live debut at the O2 Arena ceremony, after winning the Rising Star award in 2019. Later that year, he went on to hit number one with his debut album, ‘Hypersonic Missiles’, and followed it up last October with ‘Seventeen Going Under’, which also topped the charts. He was nominated for Best New Artist at the awards in 2020.
Now, he’ll join an array of stars in taking to the stage at the O2 next Tuesday (February 8). Dave, Doja Cat, Little Simz, Liam Gallagher, Ed Sheeran and Holly Humberstone are already confirmed to play the awards. Fender is nominated in three categories this year; Artist of the Year, Rock/Alternative Act, and Mastercard Album of the Year, for ‘Seventeen Going Under’. “It’s beyond a dream to be performing at the BRIT Awards this year,” said Fender in a statement. “Me and the band are so excited to get up on that stage, it’s going to be mega!!”
Sheeran, Dave, Little Simz and Adele lead the way in the nominations stake, with four apiece. The four new genre-specific awards – Alternative/Rock Act, Dance Act, Hip Hop/Grime/Rap Act and Pop/R&B Act – will be decided upon by a public vote, which is open now on TikTok. The 2022 ceremony will be the first in the event’s 42-year history not to have gendered categories. Comedian Mo Gilligan will host the awards for the first time, bringing to an end Jack Whitehall’s four-year stint in the job.
Fender will follow his turn at the BRITs with an arena tour of the UK in March and April, after being forced to pull a run of intimate dates last December amid rising coronavirus cases in the country. The nine-date run, his first full arena tour, will be followed in the summer by a huge show at Finsbury Park in London on July 15, where he’ll be joined by Fontaines DC, Declan McKenna, Beabadoobee and Goat Girl. The gig will see bands play across two stages, with more names still expected to be announced.
Sam Fender, March 2022:
20 – Nottingham, Motorpoint Arena
21 – Liverpool, Echo Arena
26 – Glasgow, OVO Hydro
27 – Birmingham, Arena
30 – Brighton, Brighton Centre
April 2022:
1 – London, SSE Arena
2 – London, SSE Arena
5 – Newcastle, Metro Radio Arena
6 – Newcastle, Metro Radio Arena