Sam Fender has donated the entirety of his twenty-five thousand pound Mercury Prize prize money to the MVT, which operates to save the Britain's grassroots music venues.
He was awarded the award on October 16 as his new release the album was named the best record of the last 12 months.
The musician has opted to give the cash to the Music Venues Trust, in recognition of the vital role local spots fulfilled in his early career.
"I personally would not have achieved my current career if it weren't for all the gigs I played around the region, and further afield, when I was just getting going," remarked Sam Fender. "These spaces are renowned, but they are in difficulty."
From early 2023 onward, over 150 of these locations have ceased operations – about 16% of the entire UK sector.
Over the past year, top acts like Pulp, Coldplay, Katy Perry and Sheeran have all supported the Music Venues Trust in its initiatives to keep the scene afloat, by including a modest fee to their ticket costs, which supports local stages.
He also participated, generating over £100k on his 2024 arena tour to help numerous small stages across the UK.
These funds supported spaces that were confronting imminent closure due to difficulties caused by floods, blazes and personal losses, as well as regulatory hurdles, court cases and sound issues.
Some locations received monetary aid in improving infrastructure and gear that directly benefitted artists and concertgoers.
"The notion that revenue from concerts in big venues helps the smaller venues, where it all starts for artists like me, is just sensible," Sam Fender has stated.
He is among several artists to give his honor prize money to good deeds.
When the band earned the trophy in 1996 for their record their work, vocalist the singer stated that the act would give their cash to the charity the charity.
In 2002, rapper and singer the artist split her award between a few charities, like the NSPCC and a Sickle Cell charity.
"And I contributed a grand to Highgate Newtown, to their gymnastics class, because I did gymnastics when I was growing up and they required better apparatus," Ms Dynamite shared with the media.
In recent years, they gave their prize money to the community center that nurtured their act, alongside other grassroots music organisations.
Also winners that year they contributed their prize to a charity for MS after a close contact was diagnosed the illness.
"Winning was ample," remarked vocalist Heather Small. "The money was the bonus but we didn't need the cherry, because we had the honor. So our success impacted another person's life."
In the past week, the MVT shared it had saved a couple of grassroots venues in that region, by placing them under community ownership.
The first in the city and the other in that location were purchased under the Own Our Venues scheme, which is supported by a national body and supporters who acquire "ownership units" in the properties.
