Sam Fender contributes twenty-five thousand pounds Mercury Prize to independent concert halls

The singer receiving Mercury Prize in his hometown
He received the Mercury Prize last month in Newcastle

The star has given the complete sum of his £25k Mercury Prize cash to the MVT, which functions to preserve the United Kingdom's small music venues.

The star was given the cheque on 16 October as his latest record his work was chosen as the outstanding release of the past year.

The musician has opted to hand the money over to the trust, in recognition of the crucial part local spots fulfilled in his beginning days.

"I personally wouldn't be doing this success if it weren't for all the shows I performed around the region, and further afield, when I was starting out," said Fender. "These spaces are iconic, but they are in difficulty."

Since the start of 2023, over 150 of these venues have shut down – approximately 16 percent of the whole industry in the UK.

Recently, major artists including the band Pulp, Coldplay, Katy Perry and Ed Sheeran have all aided the MVT in its attempts to help venues survive, by applying a modest fee to their admission fees, which benefits local stages.

Fender also took part, generating in excess of £100,000 on his recent tour to assist numerous small stages across England, Scotland, and Wales.

The money assisted spaces that were confronting potential shutdown due to difficulties arising from flooding, fires and personal losses, as well as licensing issues, court cases and sound issues.

Other venues received funding support in improving amenities and sound and lighting systems that positively impacted artists and concertgoers.

"The concept that money from shows in major spaces helps the local stages, where it begins for musicians like me, is just sensible," Sam Fender has stated.

Pulp performing
Pulp are among the artists who donated their Mercury Prize prize money to charity

Fender is far from the only musician to donate his award funds to good deeds.

In they earned the trophy in the year 1996 for their album Different Class, lead singer Cocker declared that the group would contribute their prize money to the organization the charity.

During 2002, artist she divided her bounty between a few organizations, like the children's charity and a Sickle Cell organization.

"I also gave a grand to my local community centre, to their classes, because I practiced gymnastics when I was a child and they needed better apparatus," Ms Dynamite explained to outlets.

Previously, they gave their prize money to the community center that developed their act, alongside other independent music bodies.

Additionally 1994 winners they contributed their prize to a charity for MS after a acquaintance was identified with the disease.

"Receiving the award was ample," said singer Heather Small. "The prize was the extra but we didn't require the cherry, because we had the main prize. So our victory impacted another person's life."

Last week, the trust shared it had saved two grassroots venues in that region, by transferring them to community ownership.

The first in Southampton and the second in Bristol were acquired under the public acquisition scheme, which is supported by Arts Council England and music fans who buy "stakes" in the properties.

Barry Anderson
Barry Anderson

A seasoned gaming analyst with over a decade of experience in UK lottery and casino industries, specializing in probability strategies.