When we heard that BROOKE BENTHAM was joining Sam Fender on his SOLD OUT November/December tour of the UK and Ireland, we had to get in touch and learn a bit more about this super talented musician.

We chatted about how she found out that she was going on tour with Sam Fender, her fear of playing two SOLD OUT shows at Brixton Academy and which bands she’d have headlining her very own mega-festival…..

Hi Brooke, we know you’re from the Northeast and that you’ll be supporting Sam Fender on his sold out UK/Eire tour that kicks off on November 22nd, please tell me something about you that not many people would know….

Errr, I’ve got a distinction in grade 8 musical theatre

How did you feel when you heard that you were going to be hitting the road with Sam Fender?

Thrilled. Sam called me after I’d been sedated at the dentist and told me so it took me a few hours to realise what I’d agreed to.

He’s playing some pretty big shows on the tour, have you played to as many people before?

No sir. I’m excited, and I’m terrified but I’ve got Bill (Ryder-Jones) who produced my album playing guitar with us, which puts me at ease. and my band are great anyway so I’m sure it’ll be fun !

Are there any dates that you’re particularly looking forward to? The two sold out dates at Brixton Academy maybe?

I think Newcastle (December 7th) will obviously be a fun one as it’ll be a home town show and yes, of course, London. That’s the one that’s scaring me though if I’m honest! It’s massive

Let’s go back to the early days, how did you first get into music?

My dad is a huge music fan, he taught me that if you like a song, you play it loud! and I have 3 older brothers who were always listening to cool music as I grew up. I started a theatre school when I was 9 and got really into the music side of things. It just grew from there.

When did you realise that you wanted to be a musician?

I don’t really know, it was very natural. I enjoyed singing and so my mam started me on singing lessons and my teacher told me to start writing songs and got me my first gig. I just continued and then when it came to choosing a degree, I was 2 years into gigging and had developed a real love for it. I didn’t want to do anything else.

Which bands or artists would you class as influences?

I’ve got loads of different ones. Yo La Tengo, Mazzy Star, ABBA, Bon Iver. It really depends how I’m feeling the day I write a song.

I wanted to ask you what guitar you play? It looks like a Fender Jaguar but doesn’t have the switches on the top of the guitar, please put me out of my misery!

I play a Fender Jazzmaster. Easily the nicest guitar to play. I recently got a Strat but didn’t realise how much of a ball ache it is to change the strings on it. The Jazzmaster wins on all fronts!

I read that you played the gig circuit in Newcastle for three years and often shared a stage with Sam Fender who stole your version of Bruce Springsteen’s ‘Dancing In the Dark’, which of Sam’s songs would you steal and why?

Oh god, I don’t know. I love ‘Leave Fast’. It’s relatable for artists in the North East.

Who was the last person you cooked for? What did you eat?

The last person I cooked for was my partner. I made mushroom biryani with cucumber raita. We’re both veggie. I think I eat mushrooms every single day.

Your latest single 'All My Friends Are Drunk' is about growing older, growing apart, and trying to figure out what we're doing here, did you draw from personal experiences when writing the song?

I did yeah, it was written when I’d been out of uni for about a year. Those three years went so fast and so much happens, and you come out of it and it’s like eh?! suddenly your life isn’t how it was when you were 18 and living at home and you’re essentially an adult and like .. when did this happen ? Even friends you make at uni are quite fleeting. It feels really intense at the time cause you’re living with them and then you’re out of it and it’s like, that was weird!

Do you have a set process when it comes to song writing, melody then lyrics or do you tend to approach things differently every time?

I tend to approach things differently every time. I try not to do the same thing too much because everything just ends up sounding the same then.

If you could host your own three day festival, who would you have as the headline acts and why?

Hmmm, ABBA, because they’ve got so many bangers. Mazzy Star, because I’ve never seen them live and they never did shows. Feist because she’s got such a great discography and I think she would put on an amazing show.

It’ll soon be Christmas, what’s on your Christmas list this year?

Err, jigsaws.

Lastly, there are millions of bands and acts out there, please name 3 that you are loving right now….

Imogen, Grace Lightman & Cross Record

We’d like to thank Brooke for sparing her time to chat to us and we wish her all the very best for the future and the MASSIVE tour with Sam Fender, we’ll be at the Plymouth show and will get some photos of both acts so watch this space!

You catch Brooke Bentham LIVE on the following dates;

NOVEMBER  - (All dates below supporting Sam Fender except 9th Dec*)    

22nd, Manchester Academy, Manchester     

23rd, Guild of Students Liverpool, Liverpool     

25th, O2 Academy Glasgow, Glasgow     

26th, Rock City, Nottingham      

28th, O2 Academy Leeds, Leeds     

30th, Brighton Dome, Brighton 

 

DECEMBER    

2nd, Plymouth Pavilions, Plymouth     

4th, O2 Academy Bristol, Bristol     

5th, O2 Academy Birmingham, Birmingham     

7th, O2 Academy Newcastle, Newcastle upon Tyne 

9th, The Islington, London (Free headline solo show)*    

10th, O2 Academy Brixton, London     

11th, O2 Academy Brixton, London     

13th, Great hall, Cardiff     

14th, O2 Academy Bournemouth, Bournemouth     

16th, Olympia, Dublin     

17th, Ulster Hall, Belfast     

19th, O2 Academy Sheffield, Sheffield

Keep up to date with Brooke Bentham at the following sites;

Website

Facebook

Instagram