Sam Fender donates twenty-five thousand pounds Mercury Prize to small concert halls

The artist has donated the full amount of his £25,000 award cash to the MVT, which functions to save the UK's small music venues.

Fender was awarded the prize on October 16 as his latest record People Watching was named the outstanding release of the previous year.

He has opted to give the cash to the trust, in recognition of the crucial part small stages fulfilled in his initial steps.

"I would not have achieved my current career if it wasn't for all the gigs I played around the North East, and elsewhere, when I was starting out," said Sam Fender. "These venues are iconic, but they are in difficulty."

Since the start of 2023, at least 150 of these venues have ceased operations – approximately one-sixth of the whole industry in the UK.

In the last year, major artists like Pulp, the group Coldplay, the singer Katy Perry and Sheeran have all supported the Music Venues Trust in its attempts to support the industry, by including a minor surcharge to their ticket prices, which supports independent venues.

He also participated, collecting more than £100,000 on his 2024 arena tour to help numerous local spots across England, Scotland, and Wales.

The donation helped locations that were facing potential shutdown due to difficulties stemming from floods, blazes and bereavements, as well as permit problems, legal disputes and neighbor objections.

Some locations obtained monetary aid in upgrading infrastructure and sound and lighting systems that positively impacted musicians and concertgoers.

"The concept that revenue from performances in major spaces helps the independent spots, where it begins for artists like me, is just common sense," the star has stated.

Fender is among several artists to give his honor winnings to charitable organizations.

When they earned the award in the mid-90s for their album Different Class, vocalist Jarvis Cocker declared that the group would give their cash to the non-profit War Child.

In 2002, musician Ms Dynamite shared her prize between multiple organizations, like the NSPCC and a Sickle Cell organization.

"I also donated a grand to Highgate Newtown, to their gymnastics program, because I trained in gymnastics when I was growing up and they needed better apparatus," Ms Dynamite shared with the media.

Previously, the band donated their winnings to the youth organization that nurtured their act, as well as other independent music bodies.

And 1994 winners M People contributed their winnings to a MS organization after a friend was diagnosed the illness.

"The victory was quite enough," stated singer the singer. "The prize was the extra but we could do without the bonus, because we had the honor. So our victory affected another person's life."

Last week, the Music Venues Trust shared it had rescued several local spots in south-east England, by transferring them to community ownership.

The first in the city and The Croft in that location were acquired under the public acquisition scheme, which is backed by the arts council and supporters who buy "shares" in the buildings.