Sam Fender has given the entirety of his £25k honor cash to the Music Venues Trust, which functions to save the UK's small live music spots.
The star was given the cheque on 16 October as his new release the album was declared the best record of the last 12 months.
The musician has decided to donate the funds to the trust, in appreciation of the crucial part local spots played in his beginning days.
"I personally couldn't be pursuing what I am doing today if it wasn't for all the performances I did around the North East, and elsewhere, when I was starting out," said Sam Fender. "These spaces are iconic, but they are facing challenges."
Since the start of 2023, over 150 of these spaces have ceased operations – roughly 16% of the entire UK sector.
In the last year, major artists like the band Pulp, Coldplay, Katy Perry and Sheeran have all aided the Music Venues Trust in its efforts to support the industry, by including a modest fee to their ticket prices, which goes to help independent venues.
Sam Fender also joined in, generating over £100k on his recent tour to assist thirty-eight small stages across England, Scotland, and Wales.
The donation supported spaces that were confronting imminent closure due to difficulties arising from water damage, fires and personal losses, as well as licensing issues, legal disputes and neighbor objections.
Some locations were granted funding support in upgrading facilities and gear that helped performers and fans.
"The notion that funds from performances in big venues backs the local stages, where it all starts for musicians like me, is just sensible," Fender has stated.
Fender is far from the only musician to donate his honor winnings to worthy causes.
In they earned the prize in the mid-90s for their release the album, vocalist the singer announced that the band would contribute their cash to the charity the charity.
In 2002, rapper and singer she shared her bounty across multiple good causes, such as the children's charity and a Sickle Cell charity.
"And I contributed a grand to my local community centre, to their gymnastics class, because I trained in gymnastics when I was a child and they required better apparatus," she told the media.
In recent years, Ezra Collective donated their funds to the community center that developed their group, as well as other grassroots music organisations.
And winners that year M People contributed their winnings to a multiple sclerosis charity after a acquaintance was diagnosed the disease.
"Receiving the award was quite enough," stated singer Small. "The money was the extra but we didn't require the extra, because we had the main prize. So our victory affected somebody else's life."
Recently, the trust announced it had rescued a couple of small stages in south-east England, by placing them under local control.
The Joiners in Southampton and The Croft in Bristol were purchased under the Own Our Venues program, which is supported by a national body and supporters who purchase "shares" in the buildings.
