Sam Fender has handed over the full amount of his £25,000 Mercury Prize prize money to the trust for venues, which works to protect the UK's independent concert spaces.
The star was given the cheque on 16 October as his third album his work was chosen as the top album of the last 12 months.
Fender has opted to hand the money over to the Music Venues Trust, in acknowledgment of the vital role small stages played in his beginning days.
"I wouldn't be doing this success if it hadn't been for all the shows I played around the North East, and further afield, when I was just getting going," said the artist. "These venues are legendary, but they are facing challenges."
Since the start of 2023, at least 150 of these venues have shut down – roughly 16 percent of the whole industry in the UK.
Over the past year, top acts like Pulp, Coldplay, Katy Perry and Ed Sheeran have all backed the trust in its initiatives to support the industry, by applying a small levy to their ticket costs, which goes to help local stages.
Fender also took part, generating more than £100,000 on his live tour to assist 38 small stages across Britain.
The money supported locations that were facing imminent closure due to difficulties arising from water damage, blazes and bereavements, as well as regulatory hurdles, conflicts and noise complaints.
Other venues were granted funding support in improving amenities and gear that directly benefitted artists and concertgoers.
"The idea that money from performances in large arenas backs the smaller venues, where it begins for performers like me, is just logical," Fender has commented.
The musician is far from the only musician to give his honor prize money to charitable organizations.
Back when Pulp earned the award in the year 1996 for their album Different Class, vocalist the singer declared that the band would contribute their winnings to the organization the charity.
During 2002, musician she shared her prize between multiple organizations, like the children's charity and a Sickle Cell organization.
"Additionally, I donated a thousand pounds to the center, to their classes, because I trained in gymnastics when I was younger and they lacked better apparatus," she told a publication.
Previously, they donated their prize money to the community center that supported their group, in addition to other local music groups.
Also 1994 winners they contributed their winnings to a charity for MS after a close contact was diagnosed the condition.
"Winning was ample," said singer the singer. "The money was the bonus but we didn't require the bonus, because we had the main prize. So our victory touched somebody else's life."
Last week, the MVT shared it had rescued a couple of local spots in the South East, by placing them under public stewardship.
The Joiners in that area and the second in the city were acquired under the public acquisition initiative, which is funded by a national body and supporters who buy "shares" in the properties.
