Sam Fender has given the entirety of his twenty-five thousand pound award cash to the trust for venues, which functions to protect the United Kingdom's small live music spots.
The star was awarded the cheque on October 16 as his third album People Watching was chosen as the best record of the last 12 months.
The musician has decided to give the cash to the Music Venues Trust, in recognition of the crucial part grassroots venues had in his early career.
"I couldn't be pursuing this success if it hadn't been for all the performances I played around the North East, and elsewhere, when I was starting out," stated Fender. "These spaces are legendary, but they are in difficulty."
Beginning in 2023, at least 150 of these locations have shut down – approximately 16 percent of the whole industry in the UK.
Recently, top acts like Pulp, the group Coldplay, the singer Katy Perry and Sheeran have all aided the trust in its initiatives to support the industry, by including a modest fee to their ticket prices, which goes to help smaller concert halls.
He also took part, collecting more than £100,000 on his recent tour to help thirty-eight local spots across Britain.
These funds assisted venues that were dealing with imminent closure due to challenges arising from floods, fires and family tragedies, as well as licensing issues, legal disputes and sound issues.
Some locations obtained monetary aid in improving facilities and sound and lighting systems that helped artists and fans.
"The idea that revenue from performances in major spaces backs the smaller venues, where it kicks off for musicians like me, is just logical," the star has said.
Fender is not the first artist to donate his award prize money to worthy causes.
In the band received the trophy in the year 1996 for their album their work, vocalist the singer announced that the band would give their winnings to the non-profit War Child.
That year, artist Ms Dynamite divided her award between several organizations, like the children's charity and a Sickle Cell organization.
"Additionally, I contributed a grand to the center, to their gymnastics class, because I trained in gymnastics when I was a child and they lacked updated gear," she shared with a publication.
Two years ago, the band gave their winnings to the youth organization that developed their group, alongside other independent music bodies.
Additionally the 1994 recipients M People gave their prize to a multiple sclerosis charity after a friend was found to have the condition.
"The victory was quite enough," stated artist Heather Small. "The prize was the cherry on top but we could do without the extra, because we had the cake. So our victory impacted another person's life."
Last week, the Music Venues Trust revealed it had saved two grassroots venues in the South East, by placing them under local control.
The first in that area and the other in Bristol were purchased under the public acquisition initiative, which is funded by a national body and enthusiasts who acquire "stakes" in the venues.
