Sam Fender has handed over the complete sum of his twenty-five thousand pound award prize money to the trust for venues, which operates to protect the United Kingdom's small concert spaces.
The star was given the cheque on mid-October as his third album the album was chosen as the outstanding release of the previous year.
The musician has decided to give the cash to the Music Venues Trust, in acknowledgment of the essential function local spots fulfilled in his early career.
"As an artist couldn't be pursuing what I am doing today if it weren't for all the shows I did around the North East, and beyond, when I was beginning," said Fender. "These venues are renowned, but they are struggling."
Beginning in 2023, at least 150 of these spaces have ceased operations – roughly one-sixth of the entire UK sector.
Over the past year, well-known musicians including the band Pulp, Coldplay, Katy Perry and Ed Sheeran have all aided the Music Venues Trust in its efforts to help venues survive, by adding a small levy to their admission fees, which benefits local stages.
He also took part, generating over £100k on his recent tour to help 38 grassroots venues across the UK.
These funds supported venues that were confronting potential shutdown due to difficulties arising from floods, blazes and personal losses, as well as licensing issues, conflicts and sound issues.
Additional spaces received financial assistance in improving infrastructure and technical equipment that directly benefitted performers and audiences.
"The notion that revenue from concerts in major spaces backs the smaller venues, where it kicks off for artists like me, is just logical," Fender has stated.
He is far from the only musician to donate his honor prize money to charitable organizations.
When Pulp earned the prize in 1996 for their release their work, vocalist the singer stated that the act would contribute their prize money to the non-profit the charity.
That year, musician the artist shared her prize among a few charities, including the children's charity and a charity for Sickle Cell.
"I also donated a grand to my local community centre, to their gymnastics program, because I practiced gymnastics when I was a child and they needed new equipment," the artist shared with the media.
In recent years, they donated their prize money to the local youth club that developed their group, in addition to other grassroots music organisations.
Also winners that year the group contributed their award to a MS organization after a friend was found to have the disease.
"The victory was sufficient," remarked singer Small. "The money was the bonus but we didn't need the cherry, because we had the cake. So our winning impacted the lives of others."
Last week, the MVT announced it had protected several small stages in that region, by bringing them into local control.
One venue in the city and the other in Bristol were purchased under the public acquisition initiative, which is funded by the arts council and music fans who purchase "shares" in the venues.
