Sam Fender has donated the full amount of his twenty-five thousand pound Mercury Prize cash to the MVT, which works to save the UK's small concert spaces.
Fender was presented with the cheque on 16 October as his latest record the album was chosen as the best record of the last 12 months.
He has decided to donate the funds to the Music Venues Trust, in recognition of the crucial part small stages had in his early career.
"As an artist would not have achieved this success if it wasn't for all the shows I did around the region, and elsewhere, when I was just getting going," stated Sam Fender. "These spaces are renowned, but they are struggling."
Since the start of 2023, more than 150 of these locations have shut down – about one-sixth of the whole industry in the UK.
Recently, top acts such as the band Pulp, Coldplay, Katy Perry and Sheeran have all backed the trust in its initiatives to support the industry, by adding a minor surcharge to their ticket prices, which benefits independent venues.
He also joined in, generating in excess of £100,000 on his 2024 arena tour to help numerous local spots across Britain.
The donation helped venues that were facing possible closure due to issues stemming from floods, blazes and family tragedies, as well as regulatory hurdles, legal disputes and noise complaints.
Some locations received monetary aid in upgrading infrastructure and sound and lighting systems that helped musicians and audiences.
"The idea that funds from shows in big venues backs the local stages, where it kicks off for musicians like me, is just logical," Sam Fender has stated.
He is far from the only musician to contribute his Mercury Prize prize money to worthy causes.
In the band earned the trophy in the mid-90s for their album Different Class, vocalist the singer stated that the band would contribute their winnings to the organization the charity.
That year, artist she shared her prize between a few organizations, including the NSPCC and a charity for Sickle Cell.
"Additionally, I gave a thousand pounds to my local community centre, to their classes, because I did gymnastics when I was growing up and they lacked updated gear," the artist shared with outlets.
In recent years, they donated their prize money to the local youth club that nurtured their band, alongside other local music groups.
And 1994 winners the group gave their award to a charity for MS after a acquaintance was identified with the disease.
"Receiving the award was sufficient," remarked singer Small. "The prize was the bonus but we didn't need the cherry, because we had the main prize. So our victory affected somebody else's life."
Last week, the trust announced it had rescued a couple of local spots in the South East, by placing them under local control.
The Joiners in that area and the second in Bristol were bought under the community ownership scheme, which is supported by Arts Council England and music fans who purchase "ownership units" in the buildings.
