Sam Fender has handed over the entirety of his £25k honor winnings to the Music Venues Trust, which operates to preserve the UK's small live music spots.
He was given the cheque on October 16 as his third album the album was declared the outstanding release of the last 12 months.
The musician has opted to hand the money over to the trust, in acknowledgment of the crucial part small stages fulfilled in his initial steps.
"I would not have achieved this success if it hadn't been for all the shows I played around the North East, and elsewhere, when I was starting out," said Sam Fender. "These venues are legendary, but they are in difficulty."
Since the start of 2023, at least 150 of these venues have permanently closed – about one-sixth of the whole industry in the UK.
Recently, major artists including the band Pulp, the group Coldplay, the singer Katy Perry and Sheeran have all aided the MVT in its attempts to support the industry, by including a minor surcharge to their ticket prices, which benefits local stages.
He also joined in, raising more than £100,000 on his recent tour to assist thirty-eight local spots across England, Scotland, and Wales.
The donation supported locations that were dealing with possible closure due to difficulties stemming from flooding, blazes and bereavements, as well as regulatory hurdles, court cases and noise complaints.
Additional spaces received funding support in modernizing facilities and sound and lighting systems that helped musicians and fans.
"The notion that revenue from shows in large arenas backs the independent spots, where it all starts for musicians like me, is just common sense," the star has stated.
He is among several artists to contribute his Mercury Prize winnings to good deeds.
Back when they earned the award in the year 1996 for their album the album, vocalist the singer declared that the band would donate their winnings to the organization War Child.
During 2002, rapper and singer the artist divided her prize between a few good causes, including the children's charity and a Sickle Cell organization.
"Additionally, I contributed a thousand pounds to my local community centre, to their gymnastics program, because I did gymnastics when I was younger and they lacked updated gear," Ms Dynamite told outlets.
Two years ago, the band gave their winnings to the local youth club that supported their group, alongside other local music groups.
Additionally 1994 winners the group contributed their winnings to a MS organization after a friend was identified with the illness.
"Receiving the award was quite enough," stated artist Small. "The cash was the cherry on top but we didn't require the extra, because we had the cake. So our winning touched somebody else's life."
In the past week, the trust shared it had saved a couple of small stages in that region, by bringing them into community ownership.
The Joiners in the city and the other in Bristol were acquired under the public acquisition scheme, which is funded by Arts Council England and music fans who purchase "shares" in the buildings.
