Sam Fender has handed over the full amount of his twenty-five thousand pound award prize money to the Music Venues Trust, which works to preserve the United Kingdom's small live music spots.
Fender was awarded the cheque on mid-October as his latest record People Watching was named the outstanding release of the past year.
The musician has decided to hand the money over to the trust, in acknowledgment of the crucial part small stages had in his beginning days.
"I personally would not have achieved this success if it weren't for all the shows I performed around the region, and beyond, when I was just getting going," stated Sam Fender. "These spaces are iconic, but they are struggling."
Beginning in 2023, more than 150 of these venues have shut down – approximately one-sixth of the whole industry in the UK.
Over the past year, well-known musicians such as Pulp, the group Coldplay, Katy Perry and Ed Sheeran have all aided the Music Venues Trust in its attempts to help venues survive, by including a small levy to their admission fees, which goes to help local stages.
Sam Fender also took part, collecting in excess of £100,000 on his 2024 arena tour to help numerous local spots across the UK.
These funds assisted locations that were dealing with potential shutdown due to challenges arising from flooding, blazes and personal losses, as well as permit problems, legal disputes and neighbor objections.
Other venues received monetary aid in improving facilities and technical equipment that helped performers and audiences.
"The notion that funds from shows in major spaces supports the local stages, where it kicks off for artists like me, is just sensible," Fender has commented.
The musician is far from the only musician to contribute his Mercury Prize winnings to good deeds.
When Pulp received the prize in the year 1996 for their record the album, vocalist Jarvis Cocker stated that the group would donate their cash to the organization War Child.
During 2002, artist she shared her bounty across several good causes, including the NSPCC and a Sickle Cell charity.
"And I contributed a grand to Highgate Newtown, to their classes, because I trained in gymnastics when I was growing up and they lacked updated gear," the artist shared with the media.
In recent years, the band donated their prize money to the youth organization that supported their band, as well as other independent music bodies.
Also the 1994 recipients they donated their prize to a MS organization after a friend was found to have the condition.
"Receiving the award was sufficient," remarked artist Small. "The money was the bonus but we didn't need the cherry, because we had the honor. So our winning affected the lives of others."
In the past week, the Music Venues Trust shared it had saved a couple of local spots in south-east England, by bringing them into public stewardship.
One venue in Southampton and the second in the city were purchased under the public acquisition program, which is backed by Arts Council England and enthusiasts who purchase "stakes" in the buildings.
