Sam Fender has given the full amount of his £25k honor prize money to the Music Venues Trust, which works to preserve the Britain's independent live music spots.
The star was presented with the cheque on 16 October as his new release the album was named the best record of the previous year.
The musician has opted to give the cash to the Music Venues Trust, in recognition of the essential function small stages fulfilled in his beginning days.
"I personally couldn't be pursuing what I am doing today if it weren't for all the gigs I performed around the area, and elsewhere, when I was starting out," stated the artist. "These spaces are iconic, but they are struggling."
Since the start of 2023, more than 150 of these venues have ceased operations – approximately 16% of the entire UK sector.
Over the past year, well-known musicians such as Pulp, Coldplay, Katy Perry and Sheeran have all supported the Music Venues Trust in its initiatives to help venues survive, by including a small levy to their admission fees, which supports local stages.
Sam Fender also joined in, generating more than £100,000 on his 2024 arena tour to help thirty-eight grassroots venues across the UK.
The donation helped locations that were confronting potential shutdown due to challenges stemming from flooding, blazes and personal losses, as well as licensing issues, legal disputes and noise complaints.
Other venues were granted monetary aid in improving infrastructure and sound and lighting systems that helped musicians and concertgoers.
"The concept that revenue from concerts in large arenas helps the independent spots, where it kicks off for performers like me, is just sensible," the star has said.
The musician is far from the only musician to give his Mercury Prize winnings to good deeds.
Back when the band earned the award in the mid-90s for their album their work, lead singer Cocker stated that the act would contribute their prize money to the non-profit the charity.
In 2002, artist Ms Dynamite split her bounty between multiple good causes, including the NSPCC and a Sickle Cell charity.
"Additionally, I gave a £1,000 to my local community centre, to their gymnastics class, because I trained in gymnastics when I was growing up and they needed better apparatus," Ms Dynamite explained to a publication.
In recent years, Ezra Collective donated their prize money to the local youth club that developed their band, in addition to other independent music bodies.
And winners that year they contributed their prize to a MS organization after a acquaintance was diagnosed the disease.
"Receiving the award was ample," stated vocalist the singer. "The money was the extra but we didn't need the bonus, because we had the main prize. So our winning affected the lives of others."
Last week, the MVT announced it had rescued two grassroots venues in that region, by placing them under public stewardship.
The Joiners in the city and the second in that location were purchased under the public acquisition scheme, which is backed by Arts Council England and enthusiasts who acquire "ownership units" in the venues.
