The musician donates his £25k prize cash award to small live spaces

Sam Fender has donated the entirety of his £25,000 Mercury Prize prize money to the Music Venues Trust, which works to preserve the UK's small music venues.

The star was given the prize on 16 October as his third album the album was declared the top album of the last 12 months.

The musician has chosen to donate the funds to the Music Venues Trust, in appreciation of the essential function grassroots venues had in his beginning days.

"As an artist wouldn't be doing this success if it weren't for all the performances I played around the North East, and elsewhere, when I was starting out," said Sam Fender. "These venues are iconic, but they are struggling."

From early 2023 onward, more than 150 of these venues have shut down – about one-sixth of the total UK scene.

Recently, top acts including the band Pulp, Coldplay, Katy Perry and Ed Sheeran have all backed the Music Venues Trust in its efforts to support the industry, by applying a small levy to their admission fees, which supports independent venues.

Fender also joined in, raising over £100k on his 2024 arena tour to support thirty-eight small stages across the UK.

The donation supported venues that were confronting possible closure due to issues arising from water damage, fire incidents and family tragedies, as well as permit problems, conflicts and neighbor objections.

Some locations obtained financial assistance in improving infrastructure and sound and lighting systems that positively impacted performers and fans.

"The concept that money from performances in large arenas backs the independent spots, where it kicks off for performers like me, is just common sense," the star has stated.

Fender is among several artists to donate his Mercury Prize funds to worthy causes.

When the band received the award in the mid-90s for their release the album, frontman Jarvis Cocker stated that the group would give their cash to the organization War Child.

In 2002, musician the artist divided her award across a few charities, including the NSPCC and a charity for Sickle Cell.

"I also donated a £1,000 to my local community centre, to their gymnastics program, because I trained in gymnastics when I was younger and they needed better apparatus," the artist shared with the media.

Previously, the band gave their funds to the community center that developed their band, in addition to other local music groups.

Additionally winners that year the group donated their winnings to a charity for MS after a friend was identified with the disease.

"Receiving the award was quite enough," stated artist Heather Small. "The prize was the extra but we could do without the bonus, because we had the main prize. So our victory impacted somebody else's life."

In the past week, the trust announced it had rescued two local spots in the South East, by placing them under public stewardship.

The Joiners in that area and The Croft in Bristol were purchased under the public acquisition program, which is supported by a national body and music fans who buy "ownership units" in the venues.