Sam Fender has donated the complete sum of his twenty-five thousand pound honor cash to the Music Venues Trust, which operates to protect the UK's small music venues.
The star was awarded the cheque on mid-October as his third album his work was named the outstanding release of the last 12 months.
Fender has chosen to hand the money over to the Music Venues Trust, in appreciation of the vital role small stages played in his beginning days.
"I personally couldn't be pursuing this success if it wasn't for all the shows I played around the area, and beyond, when I was just getting going," remarked the artist. "These venues are renowned, but they are in difficulty."
From early 2023 onward, more than 150 of these venues have permanently closed – approximately 16 percent of the entire UK sector.
Recently, major artists including the band Pulp, Coldplay, Katy Perry and Ed Sheeran have all backed the trust in its attempts to help venues survive, by adding a minor surcharge to their ticket costs, which supports smaller concert halls.
Sam Fender also joined in, raising in excess of £100,000 on his 2024 arena tour to assist 38 local spots across the UK.
The donation supported spaces that were facing possible closure due to difficulties caused by water damage, fire incidents and family tragedies, as well as regulatory hurdles, court cases and noise complaints.
Some locations were granted financial assistance in modernizing infrastructure and sound and lighting systems that helped artists and audiences.
"The notion that money from shows in large arenas backs the independent spots, where it begins for artists like me, is just logical," Fender has commented.
He is among several artists to donate his honor prize money to charitable organizations.
Back when the band earned the award in the mid-90s for their release the album, vocalist Cocker announced that the act would give their cash to the organization War Child.
That year, rapper and singer the artist shared her bounty across a few charities, like the children's charity and a Sickle Cell organization.
"And I contributed a £1,000 to my local community centre, to their gymnastics program, because I practiced gymnastics when I was a child and they required updated gear," the artist explained to the media.
In recent years, Ezra Collective contributed their funds to the community center that supported their group, in addition to other local music groups.
Additionally the 1994 recipients the group contributed their award to a MS organization after a friend was diagnosed the illness.
"Winning was ample," stated vocalist Small. "The money was the bonus but we didn't need the cherry, because we had the main prize. So our winning affected another person's life."
In the past week, the Music Venues Trust revealed it had saved a couple of local spots in that region, by transferring them to community ownership.
One venue in the city and The Croft in Bristol were purchased under the public acquisition program, which is backed by a national body and music fans who acquire "shares" in the buildings.
