Sam Fender gives £25,000 award winnings to grassroots concert halls
The artist has donated the entirety of his twenty-five thousand pound award cash to the Music Venues Trust, which works to protect the United Kingdom's small live music spots.
He was awarded the prize on mid-October as his latest record his work was chosen as the best record of the last 12 months.
The musician has opted to donate the funds to the MVT, in acknowledgment of the essential function local spots fulfilled in his initial steps.
"I personally would not have achieved my current career if it wasn't for all the gigs I performed around the region, and further afield, when I was just getting going," said Sam Fender. "These spaces are iconic, but they are facing challenges."
From early 2023 onward, over 150 of these locations have shut down – about one-sixth of the total UK scene.
In the last year, major artists such as the band Pulp, the group Coldplay, Katy Perry and Ed Sheeran have all backed the trust in its efforts to support the industry, by applying a small levy to their ticket prices, which goes to help local stages.
Sam Fender also participated, collecting over £100k on his recent tour to support thirty-eight grassroots venues across the UK.
The donation helped venues that were dealing with potential shutdown due to issues caused by flooding, fire incidents and family tragedies, as well as permit problems, legal disputes and noise complaints.
Other venues received monetary aid in upgrading amenities and technical equipment that positively impacted musicians and concertgoers.
"The concept that funds from concerts in major spaces backs the smaller venues, where it kicks off for musicians like me, is just logical," the star has stated.
The musician is far from the only musician to contribute his award prize money to worthy causes.
When they received the award in the mid-90s for their record the album, frontman Cocker stated that the band would contribute their cash to the organization War Child.
That year, artist the artist shared her prize among a few good causes, like the children's charity and a Sickle Cell organization.
"Additionally, I contributed a thousand pounds to the center, to their classes, because I trained in gymnastics when I was a child and they required updated gear," Ms Dynamite shared with a publication.
Two years ago, the band contributed their funds to the youth organization that supported their act, alongside other local music groups.
Also the 1994 recipients the group contributed their prize to a MS organization after a acquaintance was diagnosed the illness.
"The victory was sufficient," remarked artist Small. "The cash was the extra but we could do without the bonus, because we had the main prize. So our winning impacted the lives of others."
In the past week, the trust announced it had protected two local spots in that region, by placing them under community ownership.
The Joiners in that area and the second in Bristol were purchased under the community ownership scheme, which is backed by Arts Council England and enthusiasts who buy "shares" in the properties.