The musician gives his £25k prize award winnings to small music venues

The artist has handed over the complete sum of his £25,000 Mercury Prize cash to the MVT, which works to save the Britain's independent live music spots.

He was awarded the prize on mid-October as his latest record the album was declared the outstanding release of the previous year.

The musician has chosen to give the cash to the trust, in acknowledgment of the crucial part grassroots venues fulfilled in his early career.

"I personally wouldn't be doing what I am doing today if it hadn't been for all the performances I did around the area, and beyond, when I was starting out," stated the artist. "These spaces are renowned, but they are struggling."

Since the start of 2023, more than 150 of these locations have ceased operations – roughly 16% of the whole industry in the UK.

In the last year, top acts such as the band Pulp, Coldplay, the singer Katy Perry and Ed Sheeran have all backed the MVT in its efforts to keep the scene afloat, by applying a modest fee to their admission fees, which benefits smaller concert halls.

Sam Fender also took part, collecting over £100k on his live tour to help numerous local spots across England, Scotland, and Wales.

These funds supported locations that were facing imminent closure due to issues stemming from floods, fires and bereavements, as well as regulatory hurdles, conflicts and neighbor objections.

Other venues obtained funding support in improving infrastructure and technical equipment that helped performers and fans.

"The notion that revenue from performances in big venues helps the independent spots, where it kicks off for artists like me, is just logical," Fender has commented.

Fender is far from the only musician to contribute his honor funds to worthy causes.

When Pulp earned the trophy in 1996 for their release Different Class, lead singer Cocker announced that the group would donate their cash to the charity War Child.

In 2002, rapper and singer Ms Dynamite divided her bounty between a few good causes, such as the children's charity and a Sickle Cell organization.

"And I gave a grand to Highgate Newtown, to their gymnastics program, because I did gymnastics when I was a child and they required better apparatus," she explained to the media.

Previously, they contributed their prize money to the community center that developed their band, alongside other independent music bodies.

Additionally winners that year the group contributed their award to a MS organization after a acquaintance was identified with the disease.

"Winning was ample," remarked artist Small. "The money was the extra but we didn't require the bonus, because we had the honor. So our winning touched the lives of others."

Recently, the trust revealed it had saved several small stages in south-east England, by placing them under local control.

One venue in that area and the other in the city were acquired under the Own Our Venues program, which is backed by Arts Council England and enthusiasts who buy "stakes" in the venues.