Sam Fender has donated the complete sum of his £25,000 Mercury Prize winnings to the trust for venues, which operates to protect the United Kingdom's small concert spaces.
The star was presented with the award on 16 October as his new release his work was named the best record of the past year.
Fender has decided to give the cash to the Music Venues Trust, in recognition of the essential function local spots had in his initial steps.
"I wouldn't be doing this success if it hadn't been for all the performances I played around the area, and elsewhere, when I was starting out," said the artist. "These locations are legendary, but they are in difficulty."
Beginning in 2023, over 150 of these venues have permanently closed – roughly one-sixth of the total UK scene.
Recently, major artists including Pulp, Coldplay, Katy Perry and Ed 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 smaller concert halls.
He also joined in, collecting more than £100,000 on his 2024 arena tour to assist thirty-eight grassroots venues across the UK.
The money supported locations that were dealing with imminent closure due to difficulties arising from flooding, blazes and bereavements, as well as regulatory hurdles, conflicts and noise complaints.
Some locations were granted financial assistance in upgrading infrastructure and gear that directly benefitted artists and fans.
"The notion that revenue from performances in major spaces helps the local stages, where it all starts for performers like me, is just logical," Fender has stated.
The musician is far from the only musician to contribute his award funds to charitable organizations.
When Pulp earned the trophy in the mid-90s for their record their work, vocalist Cocker announced that the group would give their prize money to the organization War Child.
That year, musician she split her prize among several charities, like the children's charity and a Sickle Cell charity.
"And I donated a thousand pounds to Highgate Newtown, to their gymnastics class, because I practiced gymnastics when I was growing up and they required better apparatus," the artist told a publication.
Previously, Ezra Collective gave their prize money to the community center that supported their group, alongside other grassroots music organisations.
Additionally 1994 winners the group donated their winnings to a charity for MS after a close contact was found to have the condition.
"Receiving the award was quite enough," said artist Heather Small. "The money was the bonus but we could do without the extra, because we had the cake. So our success touched somebody else's life."
Recently, the trust announced it had saved two grassroots venues in the South East, by transferring them to public stewardship.
The first in that area and the other in the city were bought under the community ownership initiative, which is supported by a national body and supporters who acquire "ownership units" in the properties.
