Sam Fender has given the full amount of his twenty-five thousand pound honor winnings to the trust for venues, which works to save the UK's grassroots concert spaces.
He was awarded the cheque on mid-October as his new release People Watching was named the best record of the last 12 months.
Fender has decided to donate the funds to the MVT, in acknowledgment of the essential function grassroots venues had in his early career.
"I couldn't be pursuing this success if it wasn't for all the shows I did around the region, and elsewhere, when I was beginning," said Sam Fender. "These venues are legendary, but they are in difficulty."
Beginning in 2023, at least 150 of these spaces have permanently closed – about 16 percent of the total UK scene.
Recently, major artists like Pulp, Coldplay, Katy Perry and Sheeran have all backed the trust in its attempts to keep the scene afloat, by applying a minor surcharge to their admission fees, which benefits smaller concert halls.
He also participated, generating over £100k on his 2024 arena tour to assist 38 grassroots venues across the UK.
The donation assisted spaces that were confronting possible closure due to difficulties stemming from flooding, blazes and bereavements, as well as licensing issues, court cases and sound issues.
Some locations were granted monetary aid in modernizing amenities and gear that directly benefitted performers and concertgoers.
"The concept that revenue from concerts in big venues backs the local stages, where it kicks off for musicians like me, is just sensible," Fender has said.
He is among several artists to donate his Mercury Prize prize money to charitable organizations.
When the band earned the award in the mid-90s for their record the album, frontman the singer announced that the group would donate their winnings to the charity War Child.
During 2002, musician she split her bounty across a few charities, such as the NSPCC and a charity for Sickle Cell.
"I also donated a thousand pounds to the center, to their gymnastics program, because I trained in gymnastics when I was a child and they lacked updated gear," the artist shared with the media.
Previously, Ezra Collective donated their prize money to the community center that nurtured their act, in addition to other local music groups.
And winners that year they gave their award to a charity for MS after a close contact was diagnosed the disease.
"Winning was ample," stated singer Small. "The money was the bonus but we didn't require the extra, because we had the cake. So our success touched the lives of others."
Last week, the MVT announced it had protected two small stages in the South East, by bringing them into local control.
The first in that area and the other in Bristol were acquired under the community ownership program, which is supported by Arts Council England and supporters who purchase "stakes" in the properties.
