Sam Fender has handed over the entirety of his twenty-five thousand pound award cash to the MVT, which operates to protect the United Kingdom's small live music spots.
He was given the cheque on mid-October as his latest record People Watching was declared the top album of the previous year.
He has chosen to hand the money over to the Music Venues Trust, in appreciation of the crucial part grassroots venues played in his initial steps.
"I personally couldn't be pursuing my current career if it wasn't for all the shows I performed around the North East, and beyond, when I was starting out," stated Fender. "These venues are legendary, but they are facing challenges."
Beginning in 2023, over 150 of these locations have ceased operations – roughly one-sixth of the whole industry in the UK.
Recently, major artists like Pulp, Coldplay, the singer Katy Perry and Sheeran have all aided the trust in its attempts to help venues survive, by including a minor surcharge to their ticket costs, which supports local stages.
He also participated, collecting over £100k on his recent tour to support numerous small stages across the UK.
The money supported spaces that were confronting possible closure due to issues stemming from floods, fires and personal losses, as well as licensing issues, legal disputes and noise complaints.
Other venues received monetary aid in modernizing facilities and technical equipment that helped musicians and audiences.
"The notion that funds from concerts in major spaces helps the independent spots, where it kicks off for performers like me, is just logical," the star has stated.
Fender is far from the only musician to give his award funds to good deeds.
In they won the prize in 1996 for their record Different Class, vocalist Cocker stated that the band would give their prize money to the organization War Child.
That year, musician Ms Dynamite split her bounty between several charities, including the NSPCC and a charity for Sickle Cell.
"I also donated a thousand pounds to Highgate Newtown, to their gymnastics program, because I practiced gymnastics when I was growing up and they required updated gear," she told the media.
In recent years, Ezra Collective donated their winnings to the youth organization that developed their group, alongside other grassroots music organisations.
Also 1994 winners M People gave their prize to a charity for MS after a friend was identified with the illness.
"Winning was ample," said vocalist Heather Small. "The money was the cherry on top but we didn't need the bonus, because we had the cake. So our victory affected the lives of others."
In the past week, the trust revealed it had protected two small stages in the South East, by bringing them into community ownership.
The first in that area and the second in that location were purchased under the Own Our Venues program, which is backed by a national body and supporters who buy "stakes" in the venues.
