Sam Fender has handed over the entirety of his £25k Mercury Prize winnings to the MVT, which operates to protect the Britain's grassroots concert spaces.
He was given the award on mid-October as his new release the album was chosen as the best record of the last 12 months.
He has opted to hand the money over to the trust, in acknowledgment of the essential function grassroots venues fulfilled in his early career.
"As an artist couldn't be pursuing my current career if it weren't for all the gigs I performed around the area, and beyond, when I was beginning," remarked Sam Fender. "These locations are iconic, but they are in difficulty."
Beginning in 2023, at least 150 of these venues have ceased operations – roughly 16 percent of the total UK scene.
In the last year, well-known musicians including Pulp, Coldplay, Katy Perry and Sheeran have all aided the Music Venues Trust in its initiatives to help venues survive, by applying a modest fee to their ticket costs, which supports local stages.
Sam Fender also took part, collecting over £100k on his recent tour to support thirty-eight grassroots venues across England, Scotland, and Wales.
The money helped spaces that were dealing with imminent closure due to challenges arising from flooding, fire incidents and bereavements, as well as licensing issues, conflicts and sound issues.
Additional spaces received monetary aid in upgrading facilities and gear that directly benefitted performers and concertgoers.
"The notion that revenue from concerts in large arenas backs the independent spots, where it all starts for artists like me, is just logical," Sam Fender has said.
Fender is among several artists to donate his Mercury Prize funds to worthy causes.
In Pulp earned the award in the year 1996 for their record the album, vocalist Cocker stated that the band would give their prize money to the organization War Child.
During 2002, musician Ms Dynamite shared her bounty across multiple good causes, including the children's charity and a Sickle Cell charity.
"Additionally, I donated a thousand pounds to the center, to their gymnastics class, because I practiced gymnastics when I was younger and they required updated gear," she told outlets.
In recent years, they contributed their winnings to the community center that supported their act, alongside other grassroots music organisations.
Also winners that year the group donated their award to a charity for MS after a friend was found to have the condition.
"The victory was sufficient," stated artist the singer. "The money was the extra but we didn't need the extra, because we had the honor. So our winning touched the lives of others."
In the past week, the MVT revealed it had protected two local spots in that region, by bringing them into local control.
The first in the city and The Croft in that location were bought under the public acquisition program, which is supported by Arts Council England and supporters who acquire "shares" in the properties.
