Sam Fender has given the full amount of his £25k Mercury Prize prize money to the Music Venues Trust, which functions to preserve the UK's independent live music spots.
The star was awarded the prize on October 16 as his new release the album was chosen as the best record of the previous year.
Fender has opted to hand the money over to the MVT, in acknowledgment of the crucial part small stages played in his early career.
"As an artist wouldn't be doing my current career if it hadn't been for all the performances I played around the area, and further afield, when I was just getting going," said Fender. "These locations are renowned, but they are facing challenges."
Beginning in 2023, over 150 of these locations have shut down – roughly 16% of the whole industry in the UK.
Over the past year, major artists including Pulp, the group Coldplay, the singer Katy Perry and Ed Sheeran have all aided the Music Venues Trust in its efforts to help venues survive, by including a minor surcharge to their ticket prices, which goes to help local stages.
Fender also joined in, generating over £100k on his 2024 arena tour to help numerous local spots across England, Scotland, and Wales.
These funds supported spaces that were facing imminent closure due to issues arising from water damage, fires and family tragedies, as well as licensing issues, conflicts and sound issues.
Some locations were granted financial assistance in improving infrastructure and sound and lighting systems that positively impacted artists and concertgoers.
"The notion that revenue from performances in major spaces supports the local stages, where it all starts for performers like me, is just common sense," the star has said.
The musician is among several artists to give his honor funds to charitable organizations.
When Pulp won the prize in the year 1996 for their album Different Class, frontman Jarvis Cocker announced that the act would contribute their winnings to the organization War Child.
During 2002, rapper and singer Ms Dynamite divided her prize between a few charities, including the NSPCC and a charity for Sickle Cell.
"And I gave a thousand pounds to the center, to their gymnastics class, because I did gymnastics when I was growing up and they needed better apparatus," she shared with the media.
Previously, they gave their prize money to the community center that supported their group, as well as other grassroots music organisations.
And the 1994 recipients the group gave their award to a multiple sclerosis charity after a friend was identified with the disease.
"The victory was sufficient," remarked artist Heather Small. "The cash was the cherry on top but we didn't need the bonus, because we had the cake. So our winning touched the lives of others."
Recently, the MVT revealed it had saved several grassroots venues in the South East, by transferring them to public stewardship.
The Joiners in Southampton and The Croft in the city were acquired under the community ownership initiative, which is backed by a national body and music fans who buy "stakes" in the venues.
