Advertisement
Press Release

“There was times where me mam was like, literally: it’s the rent or the groceries.” Superstar, Sam Fender, opens up to The Big Issue

Musician and working-class hero, Sam Fender, opened up to The Big Issue.

Today (Monday, 31st January), musician and working-class hero, Sam Fender, opened up to The Big Issue.

Sam Fender has been a supporter of The Big Issue and its mission for a while, previously supporting the organisation last year as the country went back into Covid-19 restrictions. In the singer’s latest interview for The Big Issue he opened up about his life, politics and views on class.

It was actually a former Big Issue vendor and current employee of North East Homeless, Earl Charlton, who inspired Sam to harness his platform for good. The pair remain good friends: “I see Earl like nearly every other day when I’m down there [at the music studio]. We’ll always sit and have a cup of tea and a chat. He’s very empathetic when I’m on a bad day. Earl’s always a man with a plan, from putting on poetry nights to taking up boxing – all of it in aid of charity. He is just a diamond. He’s a true hero and a man of the people.”

He continued: “I think I need to do some more stuff to do with this [taking action on poverty]. Because the Tories aren’t doing it. We’ve got the worst government I’ve ever seen, in my lifetime. My dad reckons it’s one of the worst he’s ever seen. And he’s sixty-f**king-six.”

Although the singer has found fame now, his life has been far from easy: “When I was a kid, and me mam fell on hard times, I saw how little help there is when you get to that place. There was times where she was like, literally: it’s the rent or the groceries. I seen what that did to my mother’s self-esteem. And her mental health. It was the shame of it. She used to always say, ‘I feel embarrassed’. And so that struggle’s always been close to me.”

Although he is a self-proclaimed left-winger, Sam expressed concerns that many left-wing publications have forgotten the important role class still plays in society: “I don’t think a lot of the left-wing, liberal papers talk about class as much as they probably should. Or they forget that class is threaded through all of these discussions.”

Advertisement
Advertisement

He continued: “I loved f**king Corbyn, quite frankly. I mean, he f**ked up a lot of things. But I think his heart was in the right place and that’s something that we’ve not seen for a long time. I just think he was done a massive disservice by the British press. And I think a lot of people who he would have potentially helped, were groomed to hate him. The Tory party knew exactly what they were doing when it comes to turning him into a f**king enemy.”

Despite his strong views, Sam does not think a political career is for him: “I couldn’t. They would f**king destroy me. I’m not clean enough. That’s the issue. All they’d have to do is just catch us one night on a bender, and then that would be me. I’m not a politician. I’m a f**king artist. I couldn’t do it. They’d run rings around us.”

He explained: “Music was therapy to me before I did therapy. It was only form of catharsis that I’ve ever had. And if I can provide some level of catharsis for somebody else who’s listening, then that’s what I’ve achieved.”

He concluded: “F**k politics, man. Community’s the way forward.”

Please go out and buy a copy of The Big Issue from your local vendor or subscribe online.

Advertisement

    Change a vendor's life this Christmas

    This Christmas, 3.8 million people across the UK will be facing extreme poverty. Thousands of those struggling will turn to selling the Big Issue as a vital source of income - they need your support to earn and lift themselves out of poverty.

    Recommended for you

    Read All
    Big Issue vendors set to earn close to half a million additional earnings by 2027 via giffgaff partnership
    Hammersmith Big Issue vendor Dave Martin uses his giffgaff phone to take a contactless payment. Credit Andy Parsons
    Press Release

    Big Issue vendors set to earn close to half a million additional earnings by 2027 via giffgaff partnership

    Big Issue’s social investment arm reaching 1.8 million Brits through investees
    The Power Up London 2024 Cohort of Big Issue Investees.
    Big Issue Invest

    Big Issue’s social investment arm reaching 1.8 million Brits through investees

    New research shows over half of Brits feel more at risk of homelessness than last year
    Press Release

    New research shows over half of Brits feel more at risk of homelessness than last year

    Wrap up in style or put up on display: Artists including Opake and Harry Hill feature in Big Issue designer wrapping paper collection
    Press Release

    Wrap up in style or put up on display: Artists including Opake and Harry Hill feature in Big Issue designer wrapping paper collection

    Most Popular

    Read All
    Renters pay their landlords' buy-to-let mortgages, so they should get a share of the profits
    Renters: A mortgage lender's window advertising buy-to-let products
    1.

    Renters pay their landlords' buy-to-let mortgages, so they should get a share of the profits

    Exclusive: Disabled people are 'set up to fail' by the DWP in target-driven disability benefits system, whistleblowers reveal
    Pound coins on a piece of paper with disability living allowancve
    2.

    Exclusive: Disabled people are 'set up to fail' by the DWP in target-driven disability benefits system, whistleblowers reveal

    Cost of living payment 2024: Where to get help now the scheme is over
    next dwp cost of living payment 2023
    3.

    Cost of living payment 2024: Where to get help now the scheme is over

    Citroën Ami: the tiny electric vehicle driving change with The Big Issue
    4.

    Citroën Ami: the tiny electric vehicle driving change with The Big Issue