Sam Fender has pulled out of several European festival dates after suffering a vocal cord haemorrhage.
The 31-year-old rocker has been told by his ears, nose and throat doctor (ENT) that he has a haemorrhage and has been advised not to sing for the next two weeks to prevent “lasting damage to [his] vocal cords”.
In a statement shared on Instagram, 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.
“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 FC.
Earlier this year, Sam was named Best Alternative / Rock Act at the BRIT Awards where he performed his single People Watching with his band.