Sam Fender has given the full amount of his £25k award prize money to the Music Venues Trust, which operates to save the UK's grassroots concert spaces.
The star was given the prize on 16 October as his new release his work was declared the outstanding release of the previous year.
The musician has opted to give the cash to the Music Venues Trust, in recognition of the vital role local spots had in his beginning days.
"As an artist would not have achieved this success if it wasn't for all the shows I did around the North East, and beyond, when I was starting out," said Sam Fender. "These spaces are iconic, but they are facing challenges."
Beginning in 2023, at least 150 of these locations have shut down – roughly 16% of the entire UK sector.
Over the past year, major artists including the band Pulp, Coldplay, Katy Perry and Ed Sheeran have all backed the trust in its attempts to help venues survive, by adding a small levy to their ticket costs, which benefits independent venues.
Fender also took part, collecting in excess of £100,000 on his 2024 arena tour to help numerous local spots across Britain.
These funds supported venues that were confronting imminent closure due to challenges arising from floods, fires and family tragedies, as well as regulatory hurdles, conflicts and neighbor objections.
Additional spaces were granted monetary aid in upgrading facilities and technical equipment that positively impacted performers and fans.
"The idea that money from shows in big venues supports the independent spots, where it kicks off for artists like me, is just common sense," Fender has said.
He is not the first artist to donate his Mercury Prize funds to worthy causes.
In they earned the trophy in 1996 for their record Different Class, vocalist Cocker declared that the band would donate their winnings to the non-profit War Child.
That year, rapper and singer the artist divided her award between several charities, like the children's charity and a charity for Sickle Cell.
"I also donated a grand to the center, to their gymnastics class, because I trained in gymnastics when I was a child and they needed updated gear," she shared with a publication.
In recent years, Ezra Collective gave their prize money to the youth organization that developed their band, alongside other local music groups.
Additionally winners that year the group contributed their winnings to a MS organization after a friend was identified with the illness.
"The victory was quite enough," said artist Small. "The prize was the bonus but we could do without the bonus, because we had the honor. So our victory affected somebody else's life."
Recently, the Music Venues Trust shared it had protected two small stages in south-east England, by placing them under local control.
The first in Southampton and the other in Bristol were bought under the Own Our Venues program, which is funded by Arts Council England and enthusiasts who purchase "stakes" in the buildings.
