Geordie sensation Sam Fender is set for another dream-come-true next year - he's opening for musical hero Bruce Springsteen on the Boss's European tour in Italy.
Sam, 28, will play three gigs with the legendary US performer and his E Street Band in May and July 2023. The gigs will take place in Ferrara (May 18), Rome (May 21) and at the historic Monza racetrack famous for hosting Formula 1 races (July 25).
In a tweet confirming his presence on the tour, Sam said: "I’m thinking about the moment @springsteen music first resonated with me when I was a teenager! Next year I’m opening up for him in Italy." North Shields native Sam has been candid about how Springsteen has influenced him over the years - and has covered tracks like Dancing in the Dark and I'm on Fire live.
Read more: Sam Fender's brother Liam to play headline show at Newcastle's Riverside following release of single
On Facebook he went into more detail: "I'm thinking about the moment Bruce ’s music first resonated with me. I was a teenager, in my brother Liam Fender’s van that he used to gig with, loose baccy and the old green packets of golden Virginia all over the van, the smell of smoke, full of excitement, driving down to Manchester for some audition for god knows what.
"My brother whacks in the cd, turns the volume up, and the snare roll of Born to Run punched me in the face for the very first time. Something stirred in me that day - and I wish that I could bottle the feeling I had in that van, have a swig every now and then when I’m being a sappy f***er. I wouldn’t be what I am today without my brother, that music and those long rides in that janky little van."
Sam also revealed plans for a headline show in Milan on May 23 - and tickets for that go on sale on November 30.
Earlier this year, Sam revealed he has collaborated with the Boss on a charity track too - in aid of the Teenage Cancer Trust - while he has spoken about how Springsteen inspired him when he was starting out. Earlier this year, he told music magazine Consequence : "I saw him in Manchester and I just bawled my eyes out the whole show.
"Every song just means that much to me. Every single one of his songs is attached to a memory I have in my own life."
He has also spoken out about how Springsteen's philanthropy - he once visited miner's support groups in the North East before a St James' Park gig and donated thousands to them - inspired him too. In 2020, he tweeted: "This is why @springsteen is my biggest hero. He came to my town, saw our struggle and helped even though he’s from the other side of the Atlantic.
"My Godfather was at this show, he told me this when I was a kid, it started a fire in me."
Earlier this Autumn, Sam - who has a homecoming headline show at St James' Park also on the slate for next year - was inundated with support after taking a break from the public eye to safeguard his mental health. This comes after another hugely successful year which has seen the musician take home awards and delight fans on Tyneside and around the world.
READ NEXT:
- Sam Fender to play massive gig at Newcastle's St James' Park
- From open mics to St James' gigs - Sam Fender, he's one's of our own
- Sunderland mum, 33, hopes to complete 'bucket list' with daughter after incurable cancer diagnosis
- Newcastle NHS hospitals hit by needle and syringe supply issues due to 'global shortages and Brexit'
- NHS awarded £30m funding to make vital drugs in Seaton Delaval hub
