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Sam Fender donates his £25k prize Mercury Prize to small concert halls

The artist receiving his trophy in Newcastle
Sam Fender received the Mercury Prize recently in the North East

The artist has donated the entirety of his £25,000 honor cash to the MVT, which operates to protect the Britain's grassroots live music spots.

He was given the award on October 16 as his new release his work was named the outstanding release of the last 12 months.

Fender has decided to hand the money over to the Music Venues Trust, in acknowledgment of the vital role grassroots venues played in his beginning days.

"As an artist wouldn't be doing my current career if it wasn't for all the gigs I performed around the area, and beyond, when I was just getting going," stated Fender. "These spaces are renowned, but they are struggling."

Beginning in 2023, more than 150 of these spaces have shut down – roughly one-sixth of the entire UK sector.

Over the past year, top acts such as the band Pulp, Coldplay, the singer Katy Perry and Ed Sheeran have all backed the Music Venues Trust in its initiatives to support the industry, by adding a modest fee to their ticket prices, which goes to help smaller concert halls.

Fender also took part, raising more than £100,000 on his live tour to help numerous small stages across the UK.

The money supported spaces that were facing imminent closure due to challenges stemming from water damage, fires and personal losses, as well as permit problems, court cases and sound issues.

Some locations received monetary aid in modernizing infrastructure and sound and lighting systems that positively impacted musicians and concertgoers.

"The concept that funds from performances in big venues backs the smaller venues, where it begins for musicians like me, is just common sense," Fender has commented.

Pulp members on stage
They are one of the many acts who contributed their honor funds to good causes

The musician is among several artists to give his honor winnings to good deeds.

When they won the trophy in the year 1996 for their record the album, vocalist Cocker declared that the group would donate their cash to the charity the charity.

During 2002, musician she split her award across multiple charities, including the children's charity and a Sickle Cell charity.

"I also gave a £1,000 to my local community centre, to their gymnastics program, because I practiced gymnastics when I was growing up and they needed better apparatus," Ms Dynamite explained to outlets.

Previously, they gave their funds to the youth organization that developed their group, in addition to other independent music bodies.

And winners that year M People gave their winnings to a multiple sclerosis charity after a friend was found to have the condition.

"The victory was ample," stated artist the singer. "The prize was the cherry on top but we didn't need the cherry, because we had the cake. So our winning touched the lives of others."

Last week, the Music Venues Trust shared it had rescued a couple of local spots in south-east England, by placing them under public stewardship.

The Joiners in Southampton and The Croft in Bristol were acquired under the community ownership program, which is backed by a national body and enthusiasts who purchase "ownership units" in the properties.

Written by

Laura Deleon

Lena is a passionate music journalist from Zurich with over a decade of experience covering indie and rock music across Switzerland.

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