🔗 Share this article

The artist has given the full amount of his £25k award cash to the trust for venues, which works to preserve the UK's small concert spaces.

The star was presented with the cheque on mid-October as his latest record the album was declared the top album of the past year.

The musician has chosen to hand the money over to the trust, in acknowledgment of the essential function small stages fulfilled 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 beyond, when I was just getting going," said Fender. "These spaces are iconic, but they are struggling."

From early 2023 onward, more than 150 of these locations have ceased operations – roughly one-sixth of the whole industry in the UK.

Over the past year, top acts such as the band Pulp, Coldplay, Katy Perry and Ed Sheeran have all supported the trust in its attempts to help venues survive, by applying a minor surcharge to their admission fees, which benefits independent venues.

Sam Fender also participated, collecting in excess of £100,000 on his 2024 arena tour to assist 38 grassroots venues across the UK.

The donation assisted venues that were dealing with possible closure due to issues arising from water damage, blazes and bereavements, as well as regulatory hurdles, conflicts and neighbor objections.

Other venues obtained funding support in upgrading infrastructure and technical equipment that directly benefitted musicians and audiences.

"The concept that funds from performances in big venues helps the smaller venues, where it begins for performers like me, is just logical," the star has stated.

The musician is not the first artist to contribute his honor winnings to charitable organizations.

When they received the trophy in the year 1996 for their album Different Class, frontman Jarvis Cocker stated that the group would contribute their prize money to the non-profit the charity.

In 2002, artist the artist split her prize among several charities, such as the NSPCC and a charity for Sickle Cell.

"And I gave a thousand pounds to Highgate Newtown, to their classes, because I did gymnastics when I was younger and they required new equipment," she explained to a publication.

Two years ago, they contributed their prize money to the community center that supported their group, alongside other local music groups.

Additionally winners that year they gave their award to a charity for MS after a friend was diagnosed the illness.

"Winning was sufficient," stated artist the singer. "The cash was the extra but we didn't require the cherry, because we had the cake. So our success touched somebody else's life."

Last week, the trust revealed it had protected several small stages in that region, by transferring them to community ownership.

The Joiners in Southampton and the other in that location were bought under the Own Our Venues scheme, which is backed by a national body and supporters who acquire "shares" in the buildings.