As a child Sammy Rae had an “aha” moment, while watching an episode of Vh1’s Behind The Music on Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band. Though she was already writing songs and playing music at a young age, a different type of ambition struck her - she wanted to be a band leader. It was at this moment that the idea for her musical project was born. She went on toestablish a group of remarkable musicians, each with their own unique talent and together an unstoppable collective. In the last few months Sammy Rae has released “I Get It Now,” “Thieves” and “Coming Home Song,” and together they mark the first three releases of new recorded music since she burst onto the scene with her two EPs The Good Life (2018) and Let’s Throw a Party (2021). Since those early releases, Sammy Rae & The Friends have become a juggernaut. With a live experience that fans liken to church…or communion, however you see it, it's an exultation and a cathartic release like no other musical act can offer. In the few years since she started workshopping her live show at NYC’s Rockwood Music Hall, she’s grown to selling out 5000 cap venues from London to LA and continues to add to her fervent fanbase.
Sammy Rae & The Friends have announced a major North American tour taking place this fall. The dates will kick off on September 30th at Stage AE in Pittsburgh, PA and include several multi-night residencies including Showbox SoDo in Seattle, WA on October 11th and 12th, two hometown shows at Terminal 5 in New York City on November 8th and 9th, Academy of Music in Northampton, MA on November 12th and 13th and a return Roadrunner in Boston on November 15th and 16th. Drag Queen and environmental and LGBTQ activist Pattie Gonia will open several of the dates on the tour. A full list of tour dates are below and for more details and to purchase tickets visit https://www.sammyrae.com. A portion of the proceeds from this tour will go to the Ally Coalition and their work supporting LGBTQ youth across the country. In addition to the US dates, Sammy Rae & The Friends have just announced new EU and UK dates where her global success is on full display. In London she’ll play the 02 Brixton Academy, a 5000 capacity venue and will play other venues throughout the UK with which can hold thousands of her fans. Her remarkable ticket sales success has been due in large part to her exhilarating live show, launching her into bigger and bigger venues with each return.
For as much as Sammy Rae & The Friends may be a band, this collective of dreamers and artists considers themselves a family first. They flourish in any spotlight with a combination of all-for-one and one-for-all camaraderie, palpable chemistry, deft virtuosity, and vocal fireworks. Their sound is a mélange of Sammy’s influences, rooted in classic rock, folk, and funk and sprinkled with soul and jazz. Complete with a rhythm section and two saxophones, The Friends had a stellar year of high-energy performances throughout 2023 playing their biggest shows and festivals to date, including Central Park Summerstage, Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival, and their first-ever international headline tour, which saw them selling out venues from North America to the UK and Europe, including London’s 5,000 cap Apollo Theatre two times. Rae has been building toward this moment since moving to NYC from Connecticut in her early 20s. Finding herself without a built-in peer group, she simply built it herself: the literal and proverbial “Friends.” When she started playing shows, she made sure the audience was part of the family too. Everything that’s happened since, from the EPs to sold-out shows in major markets and secondary markets alike across North America and the UK & Europe, to high-profile festival sets around the world, including Bonnaroo’s main stage, Sound on Sound and more, has been based on friends telling friends.
As they prepare for the release of Something For Everybody, Sammy Rae & The Friends have come to represent more than just a band: they are a full-on movement being adopted with a refreshingly diverse clientele.
2025 EU tour dates
- Feb 11 - Netherlands, Den Haag - Paard
- Feb 12 - Netherlands, Amsterdam - Paradiso
- Feb 13 - Netherlands, Eindhoven - De Effenaar
- Feb 15 - United Kingdom, Glasgow - Barrowland Ballroom
- Feb 16 - United Kingdom, Manchester - O2 Ritz
- Feb 18 - United Kingdom, Bristol - O2 Academy
- Feb 19 - United Kingdom, London - O2 Academy Brixton