The musician gives his £25k prize award winnings to grassroots concert halls

Sam Fender receiving the award in the North East
The musician received the prestigious award in October in Newcastle

The star has given the entirety of his £25k honor cash to the Music Venues Trust, which works to preserve the UK's small live music spots.

Fender was given the award on October 16 as his third album People Watching was named the top album of the past year.

The musician has chosen to give the cash to the trust, in acknowledgment of the essential function local spots had in his early career.

"I personally wouldn't be doing this success if it weren't for all the shows I performed 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, at least 150 of these locations have ceased operations – approximately 16 percent of the total UK scene.

Over the past year, well-known musicians including Pulp, the group Coldplay, Katy Perry and Sheeran have all backed the MVT in its attempts to keep the scene afloat, by including a small levy to their admission fees, which benefits local stages.

Sam Fender also participated, raising over £100k on his recent tour to support 38 small stages across the UK.

These funds supported venues that were confronting possible closure due to challenges caused by floods, fire incidents and family tragedies, as well as permit problems, court cases and sound issues.

Additional spaces were granted financial assistance in improving amenities and technical equipment that positively impacted artists and concertgoers.

"The concept that funds from shows in big venues supports the smaller venues, where it kicks off for performers like me, is just sensible," Fender has stated.

Pulp on stage
Pulp are among the artists who donated their Mercury Prize funds to non-profits

He is far from the only musician to give his honor prize money to good deeds.

When Pulp earned the award in the year 1996 for their release Different Class, lead singer Cocker declared that the band would give their cash to the organization War Child.

In 2002, rapper and singer the artist shared her bounty between a few good causes, like the NSPCC and a Sickle Cell organization.

"Additionally, I donated a thousand pounds to Highgate Newtown, to their gymnastics program, because I trained in gymnastics when I was younger and they lacked better apparatus," Ms Dynamite explained to the media.

Previously, they gave their winnings to the local youth club that nurtured their group, alongside other independent music bodies.

Additionally 1994 winners they contributed their award to a multiple sclerosis charity after a friend was diagnosed the condition.

"Winning was quite enough," remarked vocalist the singer. "The cash was the extra but we could do without the extra, because we had the cake. So our winning touched another person's life."

Recently, the trust revealed it had rescued two grassroots venues in south-east England, by bringing them into community ownership.

The first in Southampton and the other in the city were acquired under the public acquisition program, which is funded by a national body and music fans who acquire "shares" in the properties.

James Simmons
James Simmons

Dr. Lucas Vermeer is a technology enthusiast and engineer with over a decade of experience in AI and robotics.