Sam Fender has given the entirety of his £25k Mercury Prize winnings to the trust for venues, which works to preserve the Britain's small music venues.
He was presented with the cheque on 16 October as his new release his work was named the best record of the past year.
The musician has opted to give the cash to the Music Venues Trust, in appreciation of the essential function small stages had in his beginning days.
"I couldn't be pursuing this success if it wasn't for all the shows I performed around the area, and elsewhere, when I was just getting going," said Sam Fender. "These locations are legendary, but they are in difficulty."
From early 2023 onward, at least 150 of these venues have permanently closed – roughly 16% of the total UK scene.
Recently, major artists including Pulp, Coldplay, Katy Perry and Sheeran have all supported the trust in its initiatives to keep the scene afloat, by including a modest fee to their admission fees, which goes to help independent venues.
He also participated, generating over £100k on his 2024 arena tour to support thirty-eight small stages across the UK.
The donation helped locations that were facing potential shutdown due to issues stemming from water damage, fire incidents and family tragedies, as well as licensing issues, court cases and sound issues.
Additional spaces were granted funding support in modernizing infrastructure and gear that directly benefitted artists and fans.
"The idea that funds from concerts in big venues backs the independent spots, where it kicks off for performers like me, is just common sense," the star has commented.
Fender is far from the only musician to donate his award winnings to good deeds.
Back when they earned the prize in the mid-90s for their record the album, lead singer the singer stated that the band would donate their winnings to the charity War Child.
During 2002, musician Ms Dynamite shared her award between multiple good causes, such as the NSPCC and a Sickle Cell organization.
"Additionally, I donated a £1,000 to my local community centre, to their gymnastics class, because I practiced gymnastics when I was younger and they needed updated gear," Ms Dynamite told a publication.
Two years ago, they donated their winnings to the youth organization that developed their band, alongside other local music groups.
Also winners that year M People gave their winnings to a charity for MS after a close contact was found to have the condition.
"Receiving the award was ample," remarked singer Small. "The prize was the cherry on top but we didn't need the bonus, because we had the honor. So our victory affected another person's life."
Last week, the trust shared it had saved two local spots in that region, by transferring them to local control.
One venue in the city and the other in Bristol were bought under the community ownership scheme, which is supported by the arts council and music fans who buy "shares" in the buildings.
