Monday August 25th 2025
Sam Fender's Summer Session at the Royal Highland Showground
Written by Midlothian View Reporter, Liam Eunson
Geordie superstar, Sam Fender, returned to the capital to perform his second Edinburgh concert, performing to around 30,000 fans at the Royal Highland Showground’s Summer Sessions on Friday the 23rd of August.
The North Shields singer-songwriter returned to Edinburgh after the success of his 3rd album, ‘People Watching’. Due to cancelling his planned Glasgow gig due to problems with his voice in December last year as part of his ‘People Watching’ tour, the British superstar made it up to his Scottish fans by performing in Edinburgh as part of the Royal Highland Showgrounds ‘Summer Sessions’.
With Fender’s friend, Olivia Dean, supporting the concert, she had fans flocking the stage early on to hear her popular hits, such as ‘Nice To Each Other’ and ‘It Isn’t Perfect But It Might Be’, from the new Bridget Jones blockbuster film.
Taking the Ingliston stage at 9pm, the outdoor venue was a sea of Newcastle football tops and bucket hats, being a nod to Fender’s Geordie roots and band saxophonist, Johnny ‘Blue Hat’ Davis.
After being warmed up by Olivia Dean’s incredible set, the 30,000 plus person crowd erupted when Fender took the stage. Opening with his song ‘Angel in Lothian’, inspired by spending some of his childhood in the Scottish Borders, Fender began with a salute to the Scottish crowd.
This is only a handful of times the artist has performed and opened, with ‘Angel in Lothian’, making his 2nd return to the Scottish capital even more iconic. Announcing that “it’s nice to be back in the best country in the British isles”, he gave his all to the beloved Edinburgh audience.
A spokesperson for the Royal Highland Centre, said: “Friday’s Sam Fender concert was a truly spectacular experience for the 30,000 people in attendance. The atmosphere was electric, and we thank everyone who came along and helped make it such a memorable evening.”
Following the iconic opening song, Fender went straight into his popular hits, playing a notorious ‘mosh pit’ song ‘Spice’ next, alowing the fans to burst into dance as fire pyrotechnics erupted over the stage.
The specifically tailored set list was close to perfect, bringing both energy and sad moments through songs, such as ‘Spit of You’. After the energy of ‘Spice’, Fender addressed the crowd and expressed his love for Scotland, then jumping into a sing along with ‘Will We Talk?’.
A special moment during the gig was 6 songs in when the artists brought superfan Cara up on stage to perform ‘Borders’. After weeks of asking on social media, Cara made her dream come true by performing alongside Fender and his band which added a very touching heartfelt moment to the set.
Another special, but predictable, moment was when Fender brought Olivia Dean back on stage to perform their popular single ‘Rein Me In’. After an outfit change, Dean was ready to give the crowd another fantastic performance with the mix of her and Fender’s vocals making for a special moment.
Before performing ‘Spit of You’, a heartfelt tale of his relationship with his father, the singer shouted out both his family and friend Lewis Capaldi, who was in the crowd watching the performance.
Going off stage for an encore after performing his hit ‘Seventeen Going Under’, the crowd chanted for more until he returned back with his best moments of the gig, performing ‘The Dying Light’ and ‘Hypersonic Missiles’, eneding his performance at the top of his game with fantastic vocals and amazing use of confetti and fireworks.
The only down side to the evening was transport issues experienced by fans with Edinburgh’s trams and Lothian Buses concert travel being over capacity with many fans arriving late to the event.
Fender lovers say that Sam Fender live is as good as he sounds on recorded tracks, if not better, and his Edinburgh performance only proved this correct with every moment of his set, from songs to on stage presence being top tier. Announcing that he loves Scotland, he brought his all to Edinburgh despite dealing with issues with his voice.
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