Sam Fender has handed over the entirety of his twenty-five thousand pound Mercury Prize winnings to the MVT, which works to protect the Britain's independent concert spaces.
He was given the prize on mid-October as his latest record his work was declared the outstanding release of the past year.
Fender has decided to give the cash to the MVT, in recognition of the vital role grassroots venues had in his early career.
"I personally would not have achieved this success if it weren't for all the shows I played around the North East, and further afield, when I was just getting going," stated Fender. "These spaces are renowned, but they are in difficulty."
From early 2023 onward, at least 150 of these venues have shut down – roughly 16% of the whole industry in the UK.
Over the past year, major artists such as Pulp, Coldplay, Katy Perry and Ed Sheeran have all supported the MVT in its initiatives to help venues survive, by including a minor surcharge to their ticket costs, which supports local stages.
Sam Fender also took part, raising in excess of £100,000 on his 2024 arena tour to support numerous grassroots venues across Britain.
The donation helped venues that were confronting imminent closure due to challenges arising from water damage, fire incidents and family tragedies, as well as licensing issues, legal disputes and sound issues.
Additional spaces received funding support in improving facilities and sound and lighting systems that directly benefitted musicians and fans.
"The idea that revenue from performances in big venues backs the smaller venues, where it kicks off for musicians like me, is just common sense," Fender has said.
He is among several artists to give his honor winnings to worthy causes.
Back when they received the trophy in the year 1996 for their album their work, vocalist Jarvis Cocker announced that the band would give their winnings to the non-profit War Child.
That year, musician Ms Dynamite split her bounty between a few charities, including the NSPCC and a Sickle Cell charity.
"And I contributed a £1,000 to Highgate Newtown, to their gymnastics program, because I did gymnastics when I was growing up and they needed updated gear," she shared with the media.
Previously, they gave their winnings to the youth organization that developed their act, in addition to other local music groups.
Additionally the 1994 recipients they donated their prize to a multiple sclerosis charity after a acquaintance was diagnosed the condition.
"The victory was sufficient," said artist Small. "The cash was the cherry on top but we could do without the extra, because we had the main prize. So our winning affected the lives of others."
Recently, the MVT shared it had rescued a couple of small stages in that region, by transferring them to public stewardship.
One venue in that area and the other in Bristol were purchased under the public acquisition initiative, which is backed by Arts Council England and supporters who buy "stakes" in the buildings.
