Sam Fender has handed over the complete sum of his twenty-five thousand pound award winnings to the trust for venues, which works to save the Britain's small concert spaces.
Fender was awarded the prize on 16 October as his third album his work was declared the top album of the previous year.
Fender has decided to give the cash to the trust, in acknowledgment of the crucial part grassroots venues played in his early career.
"As an artist wouldn't be doing what I am doing today if it weren't for all the performances I performed around the North East, and beyond, when I was starting out," said Fender. "These locations are legendary, but they are facing challenges."
From early 2023 onward, over 150 of these locations have shut down – approximately 16% of the entire UK sector.
Over the past year, top acts like Pulp, Coldplay, Katy Perry and Ed Sheeran have all supported the Music Venues Trust in its initiatives to help venues survive, by applying a modest fee to their admission fees, which supports local stages.
Sam Fender also participated, generating over £100k on his 2024 arena tour to support thirty-eight local spots across Britain.
The money assisted locations that were dealing with possible closure due to challenges caused by water damage, blazes and bereavements, as well as licensing issues, court cases and sound issues.
Some locations received funding support in upgrading facilities and gear that helped artists and concertgoers.
"The concept that revenue from concerts in big venues supports the local stages, where it all starts for performers like me, is just sensible," Sam Fender has stated.
Fender is among several artists to give his award prize money to good deeds.
When Pulp won the prize in the year 1996 for their record the album, lead singer Cocker stated that the band would give their winnings to the organization War Child.
During 2002, musician the artist divided her prize between multiple charities, such as the NSPCC and a charity for Sickle Cell.
"I also contributed a £1,000 to my local community centre, to their gymnastics class, because I practiced gymnastics when I was younger and they required better apparatus," she shared with the media.
In recent years, Ezra Collective donated their winnings to the local youth club that developed their group, in addition to other grassroots music organisations.
Additionally winners that year they gave their prize to a MS organization after a close contact was found to have the disease.
"Winning was quite enough," said singer Small. "The money was the extra but we didn't need the cherry, because we had the main prize. So our victory affected somebody else's life."
In the past week, the MVT revealed it had rescued a couple of small stages in south-east England, by placing them under public stewardship.
The Joiners in the city and the other in that location were acquired under the Own Our Venues scheme, which is funded by a national body and enthusiasts who purchase "stakes" in the venues.
