Sam Fender has handed over the full amount of his £25k Mercury Prize prize money to the Music Venues Trust, which works to protect the Britain's independent music venues.
Fender was awarded the cheque on 16 October as his new release his work was declared the best record of the previous year.
Fender has chosen to donate the funds to the MVT, in acknowledgment of the vital role grassroots venues had in his initial steps.
"I personally couldn't be pursuing my current career if it hadn't been for all the gigs I played around the region, and further afield, when I was just getting going," remarked Fender. "These spaces are iconic, but they are facing challenges."
Beginning in 2023, over 150 of these venues have shut down – about 16% of the total UK scene.
In the last year, major artists including Pulp, Coldplay, Katy Perry and Sheeran have all backed the Music Venues Trust in its initiatives to support the industry, by applying a modest fee to their ticket prices, which benefits local stages.
Sam Fender also joined in, raising in excess of £100,000 on his recent tour to support 38 small stages across Britain.
These funds supported spaces that were confronting imminent closure due to issues caused by flooding, fires and bereavements, as well as permit problems, court cases and noise complaints.
Other venues were granted funding support in upgrading infrastructure and technical equipment that directly benefitted artists and fans.
"The idea that revenue from concerts in major spaces backs the local stages, where it begins for musicians like me, is just logical," Sam Fender has stated.
The musician is not the first artist to contribute his Mercury Prize prize money to good deeds.
Back when they received the prize in 1996 for their album their work, frontman Jarvis Cocker declared that the act would donate their cash to the organization War Child.
During 2002, rapper and singer the artist divided her prize among a few organizations, like the NSPCC and a Sickle Cell organization.
"And I contributed a thousand pounds to Highgate Newtown, to their gymnastics class, because I did gymnastics when I was younger and they required better apparatus," the artist told the media.
Previously, they contributed their prize money to the community center that supported their band, in addition to other grassroots music organisations.
And winners that year the group donated their award to a charity for MS after a close contact was found to have the condition.
"Receiving the award was ample," said singer Heather Small. "The money was the cherry on top but we could do without the extra, because we had the cake. So our success touched somebody else's life."
Last week, the MVT shared it had protected two grassroots venues in the South East, by placing them under community ownership.
The Joiners in Southampton and the other in the city were acquired under the community ownership program, which is backed by the arts council and enthusiasts who buy "stakes" in the venues.
