Mick Jaggerhas revealed that he is a fan ofSam Fender, hailing his album ‘People Watching’ as “excellent”.
The Rolling Stonesfrontmanwas speaking toNMEahead of the release of the band’s new album ‘Foreign Tongues’, which is set to arrive on July 10– pre-order ithere.
Asked about younger artists he has been listening to recently, Jagger said: “I’vehad my Sam Fender moments lately, because I like a lot of his stuff. That ‘People Watching’ album was stunning. Yeah, I thought that album was excellent, earlier stuff I liked, you know, ‘Seventeen Going Under’,there’ssome good stuff on that album.”
“It’s always the same when you hear songs for the first time,” he continued. “It’sjust the general vibe and then the grooves.It’srock music, you know, but his songs have good choruses – which is part of the game.I think a lot of the lyricsarereally interestingtoo and reflective of his experience growing up.”
Jagger also noted that Fender’s writing has begun to move beyond the working-class themes that helped define his early material.
“He’s obviously very pop orientated,” he said. “He’snot only doing working class songs.The song he did withOlivia Deanwasvery successful.”
He then singled out ‘Crumbling Empire’ from ‘People Watching’ as “lyrically interesting”.
NMEput it to Jagger that Fender could be a fitting guest at a future Stones show, perhaps on ‘Tumbling Dice’. “Yeah, he might be really good for that,” Jagger replied.
Fender released ‘People Watching’ in February 2025, following 2021’s ‘Seventeen Going Under’.In a four-star review,NMEdescribed the album as“Reflective, analytical and vulnerable”, concluding: “He approaches each track with sensitivity as he looks back on his life so far – perhaps even with an inkling of guilt – and contemplates who he may be next.”
The album went on to win the 2025 Mercury Prize, with Fender later donating his £25,000 winnings to Music Venue Trust.
Jagger’s comments come afterhe recently discussed a number of younger artists he has been listening to, includingGeese, who he hailed as “very experimental”,andRosalíafor her “conceptual” album ‘Lux’.
The Rolling Stones, meanwhile, have previewed ‘Foreign Tongues’ with the singles ‘Rough AndTwisted’,‘InTheStars’,‘Jealous Lover’ and ‘Divine Intervention’.
Speaking toNMEaboutPaulMcCartney’s appearance on the record, Jagger said it was “very easy” working with the former Beatle, who plays bass on ‘CoveredInYou’.
Robert Smith also features on ‘Divine Intervention’,althoughThe Curefrontmaninitially turned down the chance to collaborate with the band because he “wasn’t really prepared for it”.
The Stones have also launched a six-part podcast series,SpeakingInTongues, exploring the making of the album.
Jagger also recently named ‘Sticky Fingers’, ‘Beggars Banquet’ and ‘Hackney Diamonds’ among his favourite Rolling Stones albums, while pointing to ‘Sympathy For The Devil’, ‘Start Me Up’, ‘Angie’ and ‘Honky Tonk Women’ as among his favourite songs.