From Malibu For Matty To North Shields For Sammy

A tribute band who famously found themselves sharing a stage with The 1975 frontman Matty Healy at a secret Malibu celebration brought their unique connection with the Healy family to North Shields for a special fundraiser for the Sunday for Sammy Trust.

The 9075 performed at Salt Market Social on North Shields Fish Quay bringing their recreation of The 1975’s live show to Tyneside in front of a sold-out 450-capacity audience, with proceeds supporting the North East charity.

The evening featured an impressive line-up of North East musicians and performers, alongside several very special guests who appeared both in person and via video link.

Among those joining the event by video was Sunday for Sammy Chair Tim Healy, who appeared with his son Matty Healy.

Matty revealed exclusively that work on The 1975’s much-anticipated new album was almost complete, giving fans at the North Shields fundraiser a particularly special insight into what is happening with the band and within hours the news was making headlines worldwide.

Matty’s mum, actress Denise Welch, also sent a video message from her luxury trailer on the set of the new Netflix sitcom, Marbles, adding another familiar face to the evening.

The event was hosted by singer, comedian and Sunday for Sammy trustee Kelly Rickard, who also performed during the evening.

She was joined on stage by Olivier Award-winning actress Jill Halfpenny, who has become a familiar face at Sunday for Sammy’s major arena shows, while Joe Atkinson, the multi-instrumentalist and musician known for his work with Sam Fender, also performed.

The night also featured saxophonist Niall Armstrong, bass player Mark Appleby, drummer Michael Mather, Low Lights Tavern MD Lyndon Philliskirk, alongside a host of talented North East performers, including Ben Harwood who recently packed out The Cluny.

Funds raised by the charity are re-distributed to young North East creative talent in the form of grants to support them with their future, recent grantees also joined the stage and wowed the audience with their rendition of The 1975’s music.

North Shields singer-songwriter and guitarist Chris Forbes performed as did singer, multi-instrumentalist and dancer Aydie Gargett, who showcased his talents nationally on Channel 4’s The Piano.

Singer-songwriter and guitarist Joe Allan, champion of the North East grassroots music scene also appeared, following his appearance at the Sunday for Sammy Arena show in February.

Support came from Leopard Print, the exciting North East band who have recently received a Sunday for Sammy grant.

Sunday for Sammy’s Karen Goldfinch explained “We’re committed to providing young creative talent with valuable opportunities both onstage and behind the scenes, it’s something we’re all passionate about in the trust.  In addition to our young talent on stage, we had students from both Gateshead College and the newly formed Tyneside Cinema Talent Unit gaining first-hand experience of working on a real event.  Everyone involved played an important part and were all fantastic to work with.”

For The 9075, the fundraiser represented the latest chapter in an extraordinary relationship with the charity and the North East.

The Italy-based band became closely connected with Sunday for Sammy after regularly visiting the charity’s office above the Low Lights Tavern in North Shields, where they became particularly fond of the venue’s famous pies.

That relationship took another remarkable turn earlier this year when the band were secretly invited to California by Louis Healy to perform at a private stag celebration for his brother and Sunday for Sammy patron Matty Healy.

The 9075 performed a 45-minute set for around 25 guests at Aviator Nation Dreamland in Malibu before Healy himself joined frontman Carlo on stage and sang alongside the band.

The surprise performance subsequently attracted international media attention.

The connection with North Shields began the night before the main event, with Carlo performing a special warm-up acoustic set with some North East friends in the legendary Low Lights Tavern music room, the very place Sam Fender was spotted by his soon to be manager.

The evening at Salt Market Social brought together the band’s tribute to The 1975 with the wider Sunday for Sammy family and some of the North East’s best emerging and established performers.

Event Producer Paul Irwin said, “In true Sunday for Sammy tradition, we wanted to deliver a show packed with surprises. It was great fun having The 9075 share the stage with established stars alongside our exceptional new Sammy grantees.”

For The 9075, performing for Sunday for Sammy was about much more than recreating the music of The 1975.

The band had previously described taking part in a Sunday for Sammy event as “a genuine honour”, particularly because of the charity’s longstanding connection with the Healy family and its support for the next generation of North East talent.

ENDS

Photo: Carlo from The 9075 (Jenny Squires Digital Marketing)  @jennyspiresdigitalmarketing