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Friday, October 9, 2026
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The artist contributes £25,000 Mercury Prize to small music venues

The singer accepting the award in the North East
He won the prestigious award last month in the North East

The artist has given the full amount of his twenty-five thousand pound award winnings to the trust for venues, which functions to preserve the UK's independent live music spots.

The star was awarded the prize on October 16 as his new release the album was named the outstanding release of the past year.

He has opted to donate the funds to the MVT, in acknowledgment of the crucial part small stages fulfilled in his beginning days.

"I wouldn't be doing my current career 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."

Beginning in 2023, more than 150 of these venues have shut down – about 16% of the entire UK sector.

Over the past year, well-known musicians including Pulp, Coldplay, Katy Perry and Sheeran have all backed the MVT in its efforts to support the industry, by applying a minor surcharge to their ticket prices, which supports independent venues.

Fender also took part, collecting more than £100,000 on his live tour to assist 38 grassroots venues across England, Scotland, and Wales.

The donation assisted locations that were facing possible closure due to challenges stemming from floods, blazes and bereavements, as well as licensing issues, court cases and neighbor objections.

Some locations obtained monetary aid in upgrading facilities and gear that positively impacted performers and audiences.

"The concept that revenue from shows in major spaces backs the local stages, where it kicks off for musicians like me, is just sensible," Sam Fender has stated.

Pulp on stage
The group are one of the many acts who contributed their award winnings to charity

The musician is far from the only musician to contribute his award funds to worthy causes.

In they won the trophy in the year 1996 for their release Different Class, frontman Cocker announced that the group would contribute their winnings to the organization War Child.

During 2002, musician Ms Dynamite split her award among multiple good causes, like the children's charity and a Sickle Cell charity.

"I also contributed a thousand pounds to the center, to their gymnastics program, because I trained in gymnastics when I was growing up and they lacked new equipment," Ms Dynamite shared with the media.

Previously, they gave their prize money to the community center that supported their group, alongside other grassroots music organisations.

And 1994 winners the group contributed their winnings to a multiple sclerosis charity after a friend was identified with the disease.

"The victory was ample," stated vocalist Small. "The prize was the extra but we didn't require the extra, because we had the main prize. So our victory touched another person's life."

In the past week, the trust shared it had saved a couple of grassroots venues in south-east England, by transferring them to community ownership.

The first in the city and The Croft in Bristol were acquired under the community ownership scheme, which is supported by a national body and supporters who purchase "shares" in the venues.

The writer

Christopher Williams

A software engineer with over a decade of experience in full-stack development, passionate about open-source projects and mentoring aspiring coders.

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