Sam Fender contributes £25,000 award winnings to grassroots concert halls

The star has donated the complete sum of his £25,000 honor cash to the trust for venues, which operates to preserve the Britain's grassroots concert spaces.

He was presented with the cheque on October 16 as his latest record the album was declared the top album of the previous year.

The musician has decided to give the cash to the trust, in appreciation of the vital role grassroots venues played in his initial steps.

"I personally wouldn't be doing my current career if it hadn't been for all the shows I performed around the North East, and elsewhere, when I was beginning," remarked Fender. "These locations are renowned, but they are facing challenges."

Beginning in 2023, more than 150 of these venues have permanently closed – roughly 16% of the entire UK sector.

Over the past year, top acts such as Pulp, Coldplay, the singer Katy Perry and Ed Sheeran have all supported the MVT in its efforts to support the industry, by applying a minor surcharge to their admission fees, which goes to help local stages.

He also participated, generating in excess of £100,000 on his 2024 arena tour to help thirty-eight local spots across Britain.

The donation assisted venues that were confronting potential shutdown due to difficulties caused by flooding, fire incidents and personal losses, as well as regulatory hurdles, conflicts and noise complaints.

Additional spaces were granted financial assistance in improving infrastructure and sound and lighting systems that directly benefitted performers and fans.

"The idea that money from performances in major spaces helps the independent spots, where it all starts for performers like me, is just sensible," Fender has commented.

He is not the first artist to give his Mercury Prize prize money to worthy causes.

In Pulp earned the trophy in the mid-90s for their record Different Class, lead singer Jarvis Cocker declared that the group would donate their cash to the charity War Child.

During 2002, artist she shared her award between multiple good causes, such as the children's charity and a Sickle Cell charity.

"I also contributed a thousand pounds to my local community centre, to their gymnastics program, because I did gymnastics when I was a child and they lacked updated gear," the artist explained to the media.

In recent years, the band contributed their prize money to the local youth club that nurtured their band, alongside other independent music bodies.

Additionally the 1994 recipients M People donated their winnings to a charity for MS after a close contact was found to have the illness.

"The victory was quite enough," remarked vocalist the singer. "The money was the extra but we could do without the cherry, because we had the honor. So our winning impacted the lives of others."

In the past week, the Music Venues Trust announced it had rescued two grassroots venues in south-east England, by transferring them to public stewardship.

The first in the city and the second in Bristol were purchased under the public acquisition initiative, which is backed by the arts council and enthusiasts who purchase "ownership units" in the buildings.