Sam Fender has given the entirety of his £25,000 honor prize money to the trust for venues, which operates to protect the United Kingdom's grassroots music venues.
He was presented with the cheque on October 16 as his latest record People Watching was named the top album of the past year.
He has decided to give the cash to the MVT, in recognition of the vital role local spots played in his beginning days.
"I couldn't be pursuing what I am doing today if it weren't for all the performances I did around the region, and elsewhere, when I was just getting going," said Fender. "These locations are iconic, but they are facing challenges."
From early 2023 onward, at least 150 of these venues have shut down – approximately 16 percent of the whole industry in the UK.
Over the past year, major artists like Pulp, Coldplay, Katy Perry and Ed Sheeran have all aided the trust in its attempts to help venues survive, by including a small levy to their admission fees, which benefits local stages.
Sam Fender also took part, collecting more than £100,000 on his 2024 arena tour to help numerous local spots across Britain.
The donation helped spaces that were dealing with potential shutdown due to difficulties arising from floods, blazes and personal losses, as well as licensing issues, conflicts and noise complaints.
Other venues were granted funding support in upgrading infrastructure and sound and lighting systems that directly benefitted musicians and concertgoers.
"The concept that funds from concerts in major spaces backs the local stages, where it all starts for artists like me, is just common sense," Fender has stated.
He is among several artists to contribute his honor funds to good deeds.
Back when they won the trophy in the year 1996 for their album the album, lead singer Cocker announced that the group would contribute their winnings to the non-profit War Child.
During 2002, musician the artist divided her bounty among multiple charities, such as the children's charity and a Sickle Cell charity.
"Additionally, I contributed a grand to my local community centre, to their gymnastics class, because I trained in gymnastics when I was younger and they lacked better apparatus," the artist told a publication.
Previously, they donated their prize money to the local youth club that developed their act, alongside other local music groups.
Additionally 1994 winners M People contributed their award to a MS organization after a close contact was diagnosed the condition.
"The victory was ample," remarked vocalist Small. "The prize was the cherry on top but we didn't require the extra, because we had the cake. So our winning impacted the lives of others."
In the past week, the Music Venues Trust announced it had saved a couple of grassroots venues in that region, by bringing them into community ownership.
The first in that area and the other in that location were purchased under the public acquisition program, which is backed by a national body and music fans who buy "ownership units" in the venues.
