"If the lad who's done this can see this, you're fucking scum"

Sam Fender has hit back after being informed that someone was impersonating him on Tinder.

The rising singer-songwriter and winner of the 2019 BRITs Critics Choice took to Instagram with a screen grab of the offending ‘catfish’ on the dating app, warning others to be wary if contacted by the fake account who ‘leads women on’.

“Somebody contacted me to tell me that she’d been led on by a catfish of me on Tinder,” wrote Fender. “I’m fucking furious. He’s asking girls for pictures and being a general piece of shit. Just letting people know that I am not on any dating apps or anything of the sort.

“If anyone comes across these accounts, report them. And if the lad who’s done this can see this, you’re fucking scum.”

Through his interviews and breakthrough single ‘Dead Boys’, Fender has also been very open about discussing the stigma that surrounds males being open their mental health struggles.

“I genuinely think it’s toxic masculinity and the idea of what a man is supposed to be,” Fender told NME. “This really archaic, out of date idea of how a man is supposed to conduct himself. I think that’s what kills men, genuinely. I have personally struggled with that, growing up and being a young lad in 2018 in Newcastle. I think everyone does. There are a lot of challenges we are facing; like how you are supposed to react to emotional stress. I’ve got no shame in it. I was told not to cry as a kid. It’s that sort of backwards attitude, so when we feel bad we feel ashamed or we feel like embarrassed.

“I remember specifically for me as a kid growing up or as a young teenager if I ever cried or got upset in front of anybody, I would be so humiliated. I’d be so angry with myself for being upset and then it would just become this catch 22 situation. It’s that attitude that stops men from talking and stops men from being like able to turn to each other. Me and my mates are very, very close. We all talk about our problems – especially as we’ve got older. But I don’t think a lot of people have that. Men just need to be open and not emasculate one another.”

Fender’s upcoming UK tour dates are below, with tickets available here.

Monday February 25: Gorilla, Manchester
Thursday February 28: Electric Brixton, London