Sam Fender has handed over the full amount of his twenty-five thousand pound honor prize money to the Music Venues Trust, which operates to preserve the United Kingdom's small concert spaces.
He was awarded the cheque on mid-October as his new release People Watching was named the outstanding release of the previous year.
The musician has opted to hand the money over to the trust, in recognition of the crucial part local spots played in his early career.
"As an artist wouldn't be doing my current career if it wasn't for all the shows I played around the area, and elsewhere, when I was just getting going," said Sam Fender. "These venues are iconic, but they are in difficulty."
From early 2023 onward, at least 150 of these venues have permanently closed – roughly 16% of the total UK scene.
Recently, top acts like Pulp, Coldplay, Katy Perry and Ed Sheeran have all supported the MVT in its initiatives to keep the scene afloat, by including a modest fee to their ticket prices, which supports smaller concert halls.
He also joined in, generating over £100k on his 2024 arena tour to assist 38 grassroots venues across the UK.
The money assisted venues that were confronting imminent closure due to difficulties stemming from flooding, fire incidents and family tragedies, as well as regulatory hurdles, legal disputes and sound issues.
Other venues obtained financial assistance in modernizing amenities and technical equipment that helped performers and audiences.
"The notion that revenue from performances in large arenas helps the independent spots, where it kicks off for musicians like me, is just sensible," Fender has said.
The musician is not the first artist to donate his honor funds to charitable organizations.
When they received the prize in the mid-90s for their record the album, lead singer the singer stated that the band would contribute their prize money to the organization War Child.
That year, musician the artist split her award among multiple good causes, including the NSPCC and a charity for Sickle Cell.
"Additionally, I contributed a £1,000 to Highgate Newtown, to their classes, because I practiced gymnastics when I was younger and they needed better apparatus," she shared with a publication.
In recent years, the band donated their winnings to the community center that nurtured their band, alongside other local music groups.
Additionally 1994 winners M People gave their award to a multiple sclerosis charity after a friend was found to have the illness.
"Receiving the award was quite enough," remarked vocalist the singer. "The money was the bonus but we didn't require the extra, because we had the main prize. So our victory affected another person's life."
Recently, the Music Venues Trust revealed it had saved a couple of grassroots venues in the South East, by bringing them into local control.
The Joiners in that area and The Croft in that location were acquired under the community ownership scheme, which is funded by a national body and supporters who acquire "stakes" in the venues.
