🔗 Share this article

Sam Fender has given the entirety of his twenty-five thousand pound award winnings to the Music Venues Trust, which operates to preserve the United Kingdom's small concert spaces.

Fender was awarded the cheque on mid-October as his third album People Watching was named the best record of the previous year.

Fender has opted to donate the funds to the trust, in acknowledgment of the essential function small stages fulfilled in his initial steps.

"I personally couldn't be pursuing this success if it hadn't been for all the performances I played around the area, and elsewhere, when I was beginning," said Fender. "These spaces are legendary, but they are facing challenges."

From early 2023 onward, more than 150 of these venues have shut down – roughly 16 percent of the total UK scene.

Recently, top acts like Pulp, Coldplay, Katy Perry and Ed Sheeran have all aided the MVT in its efforts to keep the scene afloat, by including a modest fee to their ticket costs, which benefits local stages.

He also joined in, raising in excess of £100,000 on his recent tour to assist thirty-eight small stages across Britain.

The donation helped spaces that were dealing with potential shutdown due to issues arising from floods, fires and family tragedies, as well as permit problems, conflicts and neighbor objections.

Additional spaces obtained monetary aid in improving infrastructure and sound and lighting systems that directly benefitted artists and audiences.

"The notion that revenue from performances in large arenas helps the independent spots, where it all starts for performers like me, is just common sense," the star has said.

The musician is far from the only musician to give his honor winnings to worthy causes.

In they won the trophy in the mid-90s for their album the album, lead singer Jarvis Cocker announced that the group would contribute their prize money to the organization War Child.

That year, rapper and singer she divided her prize between multiple organizations, like the NSPCC and a Sickle Cell organization.

"Additionally, I gave a grand to the center, to their gymnastics class, because I trained in gymnastics when I was younger and they needed better apparatus," Ms Dynamite told outlets.

In recent years, Ezra Collective gave their winnings to the youth organization that developed their group, as well as other grassroots music organisations.

Additionally winners that year M People contributed their award to a MS organization after a acquaintance was diagnosed the illness.

"The victory was ample," said artist Heather Small. "The prize was the cherry on top but we didn't require the extra, because we had the cake. So our victory affected somebody else's life."

Last week, the MVT announced it had saved several local spots in that region, by placing them under local control.

One venue in the city and The Croft in the city were purchased under the Own Our Venues initiative, which is backed by the arts council and enthusiasts who purchase "ownership units" in the venues.