Sam Fender has given the complete sum of his £25,000 award prize money to the MVT, which operates to preserve the United Kingdom's independent concert spaces.
The star was awarded the award on 16 October as his latest record People Watching was chosen as the best record of the previous year.
Fender has decided to give the cash to the MVT, in recognition of the crucial part small stages played in his beginning days.
"As an artist wouldn't be doing this success if it weren't for all the gigs I did around the region, and elsewhere, when I was beginning," said the artist. "These locations are renowned, but they are in difficulty."
From early 2023 onward, more than 150 of these venues have shut down – about one-sixth of the entire UK sector.
In the last year, major artists like the band Pulp, the group Coldplay, Katy Perry and Sheeran have all supported the trust in its attempts to support the industry, by applying a modest fee to their admission fees, which goes to help local stages.
He also joined in, generating more than £100,000 on his recent tour to assist thirty-eight local spots across the UK.
These funds assisted spaces that were dealing with imminent closure due to challenges stemming from water damage, fires and family tragedies, as well as regulatory hurdles, legal disputes and sound issues.
Some locations obtained financial assistance in upgrading facilities and technical equipment that directly benefitted musicians and fans.
"The notion that money from shows in major spaces helps the local stages, where it begins for performers like me, is just sensible," Sam Fender has said.
The musician is not the first artist to contribute his honor prize money to good deeds.
In Pulp received the trophy in the year 1996 for their album their work, vocalist Cocker announced that the act would donate their cash to the organization the charity.
In 2002, musician Ms Dynamite split her bounty among several good causes, including the NSPCC and a charity for Sickle Cell.
"And I donated a £1,000 to Highgate Newtown, to their gymnastics program, because I practiced gymnastics when I was growing up and they required new equipment," Ms Dynamite told outlets.
Previously, Ezra Collective donated their winnings to the local youth club that nurtured their act, in addition to other independent music bodies.
And winners that year M People contributed their award to a MS organization after a close contact was identified with the condition.
"The victory was quite enough," said vocalist the singer. "The cash was the extra but we didn't need the cherry, because we had the main prize. So our winning impacted another person's life."
Recently, the MVT shared it had protected several grassroots venues in the South East, by placing them under community ownership.
The first in the city and the other in the city were bought under the public acquisition initiative, which is funded by a national body and music fans who buy "shares" in the properties.
