Sam Fender has donated the full amount of his £25,000 award prize money to the trust for venues, which works to preserve the Britain's grassroots concert spaces.
He was given the cheque on 16 October as his latest record the album was named the best record of the past year.
The musician has decided to give the cash to the trust, in recognition of the essential function small stages had in his early career.
"As an artist wouldn't be doing this success if it hadn't been for all the performances I performed around the region, and elsewhere, when I was just getting going," remarked Fender. "These spaces are iconic, but they are facing challenges."
Beginning in 2023, at least 150 of these venues have shut down – roughly one-sixth of the whole industry in the UK.
Over the past year, top acts like Pulp, Coldplay, Katy Perry and Ed Sheeran have all backed the Music Venues Trust in its initiatives to help venues survive, by including a minor surcharge to their ticket costs, which benefits independent venues.
Fender also took part, generating over £100k on his 2024 arena tour to support 38 small stages across England, Scotland, and Wales.
The donation helped locations that were facing potential shutdown due to challenges arising from floods, fires and bereavements, as well as permit problems, legal disputes and neighbor objections.
Additional spaces obtained funding support in improving infrastructure and gear that directly benefitted artists and concertgoers.
"The notion that money from shows in big venues supports the smaller venues, where it all starts for performers like me, is just sensible," Sam Fender has commented.
He is among several artists to donate his award winnings to charitable organizations.
In the band earned the trophy in 1996 for their release the album, lead singer the singer declared that the act would donate their prize money to the non-profit the charity.
That year, artist she shared her prize among several charities, like the NSPCC and a Sickle Cell charity.
"Additionally, I gave a £1,000 to the center, to their gymnastics class, because I trained in gymnastics when I was growing up and they needed updated gear," she told the media.
In recent years, they contributed their funds to the youth organization that developed their band, as well as other local music groups.
Also 1994 winners they donated their prize to a multiple sclerosis charity after a acquaintance was identified with the disease.
"Receiving the award was ample," said singer the singer. "The prize was the cherry on top but we didn't require the cherry, because we had the cake. So our victory touched another person's life."
In the past week, the Music Venues Trust shared it had saved several local spots in the South East, by bringing them into public stewardship.
The Joiners in the city and The Croft in Bristol were bought under the Own Our Venues program, which is supported by the arts council and supporters who acquire "ownership units" in the venues.
