Sam Fender has given the entirety of his £25,000 Mercury Prize cash to the Music Venues Trust, which functions to protect the Britain's small music venues.
He was presented with the prize on October 16 as his latest record his work was declared the best record of the past year.
The musician has decided to donate the funds to the MVT, in appreciation of the vital role local spots had in his beginning days.
"As an artist wouldn't be doing this success if it hadn't been for all the gigs I performed around the North East, and further afield, when I was just getting going," stated Fender. "These venues are renowned, but they are in difficulty."
From early 2023 onward, at least 150 of these spaces have ceased operations – approximately one-sixth of the entire UK sector.
In the last year, top acts including Pulp, the group Coldplay, the singer Katy Perry and Ed Sheeran have all backed the MVT in its initiatives to support the industry, by including a modest fee to their ticket costs, which supports independent venues.
Fender also participated, generating over £100k on his recent tour to help numerous local spots across Britain.
These funds assisted venues that were facing possible closure due to difficulties arising from floods, blazes and family tragedies, as well as licensing issues, conflicts and neighbor objections.
Some locations were granted funding support in improving amenities and sound and lighting systems that helped artists and audiences.
"The notion that money from shows in big venues helps the independent spots, where it kicks off for artists like me, is just logical," Fender has commented.
Fender is not the first artist to give his Mercury Prize prize money to good deeds.
When they received the prize in the mid-90s for their release the album, lead singer Jarvis Cocker announced that the group would contribute their cash to the charity War Child.
That year, musician she divided her award among multiple organizations, such as the NSPCC and a Sickle Cell organization.
"Additionally, I donated a £1,000 to my local community centre, to their gymnastics program, because I practiced gymnastics when I was growing up and they required new equipment," the artist told a publication.
Previously, they contributed their funds to the youth organization that nurtured their act, in addition to other grassroots music organisations.
Also the 1994 recipients they gave their prize to a multiple sclerosis charity after a close contact was identified with the disease.
"Receiving the award was sufficient," remarked singer the singer. "The prize was the cherry on top but we didn't need the bonus, because we had the cake. So our winning touched somebody else's life."
In the past week, the Music Venues Trust revealed it had protected a couple of grassroots venues in the South East, by placing them under local control.
The first in the city and the other in the city were purchased under the community ownership initiative, which is funded by Arts Council England and enthusiasts who buy "stakes" in the properties.
