Sam Fender has given the full amount of his £25,000 honor prize money to the Music Venues Trust, which works to preserve the Britain's small music venues.
The star was awarded the prize on mid-October as his latest record the album was declared the top album of the last 12 months.
The musician has chosen to hand the money over to the Music Venues Trust, in recognition of the crucial part small stages fulfilled in his early career.
"I personally wouldn't be doing my current career if it weren't for all the shows I performed around the region, and beyond, when I was starting out," said Sam Fender. "These locations are renowned, but they are facing challenges."
Beginning in 2023, at least 150 of these venues have permanently closed – about 16 percent of the whole industry in the UK.
Recently, top acts including Pulp, Coldplay, Katy Perry and Ed Sheeran have all backed the Music Venues Trust in its initiatives to help venues survive, by including a small levy to their ticket costs, which benefits local stages.
Sam Fender also took part, collecting in excess of £100,000 on his recent tour to assist thirty-eight local spots across the UK.
The money supported spaces that were facing potential shutdown due to issues caused by water damage, blazes and personal losses, as well as permit problems, conflicts and noise complaints.
Additional spaces received funding support in improving infrastructure and sound and lighting systems that directly benefitted performers and concertgoers.
"The notion that money from shows in big venues backs the smaller venues, where it all starts for performers like me, is just common sense," Sam Fender has said.
The musician is among several artists to donate his award funds to good deeds.
When the band received the award in the year 1996 for their release the album, lead singer Cocker announced that the band would donate their cash to the organization War Child.
That year, rapper and singer she shared her bounty between several organizations, like the children's charity and a Sickle Cell charity.
"And I donated a grand to Highgate Newtown, to their gymnastics program, because I did gymnastics when I was growing up and they required updated gear," she shared with the media.
Two years ago, Ezra Collective gave their funds to the local youth club that nurtured their band, alongside other local music groups.
And the 1994 recipients they gave their prize to a MS organization after a close contact was found to have the disease.
"Receiving the award was sufficient," said artist Heather Small. "The cash was the bonus but we didn't require the extra, because we had the honor. So our success touched somebody else's life."
Last week, the Music Venues Trust revealed it had protected several grassroots venues in that region, by placing them under community ownership.
The first in the city and the other in that location were acquired under the community ownership scheme, which is supported by the arts council and music fans who buy "shares" in the properties.
