Sam Fender has given the full amount of his £25,000 Mercury Prize prize money to the trust for venues, which functions to save the United Kingdom's grassroots live music spots.
Fender was presented with the prize on 16 October as his third album the album was declared the outstanding release of the past year.
Fender has opted to give the cash to the Music Venues Trust, in acknowledgment of the crucial part small stages had in his initial steps.
"I personally would not have achieved this success if it weren't for all the performances I did around the area, and further afield, when I was starting out," stated Fender. "These locations are renowned, but they are struggling."
Beginning in 2023, over 150 of these venues have permanently closed – about 16% of the whole industry in the UK.
Over the past year, well-known musicians such as the band Pulp, Coldplay, Katy Perry and Ed Sheeran have all backed the trust in its initiatives to support the industry, by applying a modest fee to their ticket costs, which benefits independent venues.
Fender also joined in, collecting more than £100,000 on his 2024 arena tour to help thirty-eight small stages across the UK.
The money assisted locations that were dealing with possible closure due to challenges caused by floods, fire incidents and personal losses, as well as permit problems, conflicts and noise complaints.
Some locations obtained monetary aid in modernizing infrastructure and technical equipment that positively impacted musicians and audiences.
"The notion that revenue from performances in major spaces helps the smaller venues, where it begins for artists like me, is just sensible," Sam Fender has stated.
He is far from the only musician to give his award winnings to good deeds.
When the band earned the prize in the mid-90s for their release their work, lead singer Cocker announced that the group would give their cash to the charity the charity.
That year, musician the artist shared her bounty between multiple charities, like the NSPCC and a Sickle Cell charity.
"I also donated a thousand pounds to my local community centre, to their gymnastics program, because I practiced gymnastics when I was younger and they needed updated gear," she told a publication.
Two years ago, they donated their funds to the youth organization that nurtured their band, in addition to other local music groups.
Also 1994 winners M People contributed their winnings to a multiple sclerosis charity after a close contact was found to have the condition.
"Winning was quite enough," remarked vocalist Heather Small. "The money was the cherry on top but we didn't require the extra, because we had the main prize. So our winning affected somebody else's life."
Recently, the Music Venues Trust announced it had saved a couple of local spots in the South East, by bringing them into local control.
The Joiners in that area and the other in the city were bought under the public acquisition scheme, which is funded by Arts Council England and music fans who buy "ownership units" in the properties.
