Sam Fender rejected chance to perform with Joni Mitchell: “I completely bottled it”

Sam Fender has revealed he once regretfully rejected the opportunity to perform with Joni Mitchell at a Joni Jam due to nerves.

Following Mitchell’s stroke in 2015, she was left unable to speak or walk and it appeared that she would never perform again. The legendary singer-songwriter made her comeback at the Newport Folk Festival in 2022 and has since held Joni Jam concerts in Los Angeles and Washington with a collection of famous musical friends such as Brandi Carlile and Marcus Mumford.

Joni Jams initially started behind closed doors, when the likes of Mumford and Carlile would go to Mitchell’s home to play live music with a selection of friends. These private affairs led to her recapturing her love of singing and eventually returning to the stage.

Now, in a new backstage interview at Coachella with KROQ, Fender revealed that he was invited to participate in a Joni Jams at Mitchell’s Los Angeles home, recalling, “Can I tell you something mental? I got offered to go to a Joni Jam, like, you know how people were going to Joni’s house, and I didn’t go.”

When asked for his reasoning for missing an opportunity of a lifetime to sing with an all-time great, Fender explained, “Honestly, it was nerves. I was like, ‘There’s no way I can sit next to Joni Mitchell and be like do you want to listen to this?’ And I was like, ‘Does she even want these people around?’ Obviously, she did, but yeah, I got offered the chance to go, and I bottled it. I completely bottled it.”

Fender concluded by painfully admitting, “It’s one of my great regrets, it really plays on my mind.”

After scoring another UK number-one album in February with People Watching, Fender is currently on tour in the United States. The Geordie performed at Coachella on April 12th and will return to the desert for another set on April 19th.

This summer, he’ll play three sold-out hometown stadium shows at St James’ Park in Newcastle as well as huge outdoor concerts in London, Manchester, Belfast, and Edinburgh.