Sam Fender gives his £25k prize cash award to independent concert halls
The star has given the complete sum of his £25k award prize money to the Music Venues Trust, which works to preserve the United Kingdom's independent concert spaces.
The star was awarded the cheque on mid-October as his latest record his work was declared the top album of the past year.
He has chosen to hand the money over to the trust, in appreciation of the essential function grassroots venues played in his beginning days.
"I personally wouldn't be doing what I am doing today if it weren't for all the performances I played around the area, and further afield, when I was starting out," stated the artist. "These spaces are legendary, but they are in difficulty."
Since the start of 2023, over 150 of these spaces have ceased operations – roughly 16 percent of the total UK scene.
Recently, major artists like Pulp, the group Coldplay, the singer Katy Perry and Sheeran have all aided the MVT in its efforts to help venues survive, by applying a small levy to their ticket costs, which goes to help smaller concert halls.
Fender also took part, collecting over £100k on his 2024 arena tour to assist thirty-eight grassroots venues across the UK.
These funds helped locations that were confronting imminent closure due to challenges arising from floods, fire incidents and personal losses, as well as permit problems, conflicts and neighbor objections.
Some locations were granted monetary aid in improving amenities and technical equipment that helped artists and concertgoers.
"The concept that funds from shows in big venues backs the local stages, where it begins for artists like me, is just common sense," the star has commented.
He is among several artists to donate his Mercury Prize prize money to charitable organizations.
When they earned the prize in 1996 for their record their work, lead singer Jarvis Cocker announced that the group would donate their cash to the non-profit War Child.
During 2002, artist the artist divided her prize across several good causes, such as the NSPCC and a Sickle Cell charity.
"Additionally, I contributed a thousand pounds to Highgate Newtown, to their gymnastics class, because I did gymnastics when I was a child and they needed updated gear," the artist shared with a publication.
In recent years, Ezra Collective contributed their funds to the community center that supported their group, alongside other grassroots music organisations.
And winners that year they donated their award to a MS organization after a friend was diagnosed the illness.
"Winning was ample," said singer Heather Small. "The cash was the cherry on top but we didn't need the cherry, because we had the cake. So our winning affected the lives of others."
Recently, the Music Venues Trust announced it had saved several small stages in that region, by placing them under local control.
The Joiners in the city and The Croft in the city were bought under the public acquisition scheme, which is backed by a national body and supporters who acquire "ownership units" in the properties.