Sam Fender has given the complete sum of his £25,000 award prize money to the MVT, which works to preserve the United Kingdom's grassroots concert spaces.
He was awarded the cheque on 16 October as his third album the album was chosen as the best record of the last 12 months.
Fender has chosen to give the cash to the trust, in acknowledgment of the crucial part grassroots venues played in his initial steps.
"I wouldn't be doing this success if it weren't for all the shows I performed around the region, and elsewhere, when I was beginning," said the artist. "These locations are renowned, but they are in difficulty."
Since the start of 2023, over 150 of these spaces have shut down – approximately one-sixth of the whole industry in the UK.
Over the past year, major artists such as Pulp, Coldplay, Katy Perry and Ed Sheeran have all aided the trust in its initiatives to support the industry, by applying a modest fee to their admission fees, which benefits local stages.
He also joined in, generating over £100k on his live tour to help thirty-eight local spots across Britain.
The donation supported locations that were confronting imminent closure due to challenges arising from floods, fires and personal losses, as well as licensing issues, court cases and sound issues.
Additional spaces were granted monetary aid in improving infrastructure and sound and lighting systems that directly benefitted musicians and concertgoers.
"The notion that revenue from performances in major spaces backs the local stages, where it begins for performers like me, is just logical," the star has stated.
He is among several artists to donate his Mercury Prize funds to good deeds.
When the band won the award in the year 1996 for their release Different Class, lead singer Jarvis Cocker declared that the act would contribute their cash to the charity the charity.
In 2002, artist Ms Dynamite divided her prize among a few organizations, like the NSPCC and a Sickle Cell organization.
"Additionally, I donated a thousand pounds to the center, to their gymnastics class, because I did gymnastics when I was growing up and they required updated gear," the artist explained to a publication.
Previously, the band gave their funds to the youth organization that supported their act, in addition to other local music groups.
And 1994 winners M People gave their prize to a multiple sclerosis charity after a close contact was diagnosed the illness.
"Receiving the award was ample," remarked artist Small. "The cash was the bonus but we didn't need the cherry, because we had the honor. So our success affected the lives of others."
In the past week, the Music Venues Trust shared it had rescued several small stages in south-east England, by transferring them to public stewardship.
One venue in that area and The Croft in that location were bought under the community ownership initiative, which is supported by a national body and supporters who acquire "ownership units" in the properties.
