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The musician contributes his £25k prize Mercury Prize to small music venues

Sam Fender holding Mercury Prize in Newcastle
Sam Fender won the prestigious award last month in Newcastle

The star has donated the full amount of his £25k award prize money to the trust for venues, which works to protect the UK's small live music spots.

Fender was given the cheque on mid-October as his third album his work was named the outstanding release of the past year.

Fender has chosen to give the cash to the MVT, in appreciation of the essential function small stages had in his early career.

"As an artist couldn't be pursuing this success if it wasn't for all the performances I did around the region, and elsewhere, when I was beginning," remarked Fender. "These venues are renowned, but they are struggling."

From early 2023 onward, at least 150 of these venues have permanently closed – approximately 16 percent of the total UK scene.

Over the past year, top acts like Pulp, Coldplay, Katy Perry and Ed Sheeran have all supported the trust in its initiatives to help venues survive, by including a small levy to their admission fees, which supports smaller concert halls.

Sam Fender also took part, generating over £100k on his live tour to help thirty-eight local spots across the UK.

The money supported venues that were dealing with imminent closure due to difficulties caused by water damage, blazes and family tragedies, as well as licensing issues, legal disputes and neighbor objections.

Other venues obtained funding support in improving facilities and technical equipment that directly benefitted performers and audiences.

"The concept that money from shows in major spaces backs the smaller venues, where it all starts for musicians like me, is just sensible," Fender has said.

Pulp members performing
Pulp are one of the many acts who gave their award funds to non-profits

The musician is not the first artist to donate his honor funds to charitable organizations.

Back when the band earned the trophy in the year 1996 for their record the album, frontman Cocker stated that the band would give their cash to the charity War Child.

That year, musician Ms Dynamite split her bounty across multiple good causes, including the NSPCC and a charity for Sickle Cell.

"And I donated a grand to Highgate Newtown, to their classes, because I did gymnastics when I was growing up and they required better apparatus," the artist explained to a publication.

Two years ago, the band donated their winnings to the local youth club that developed their band, in addition to other independent music bodies.

And winners that year they gave their award to a MS organization after a friend was diagnosed the condition.

"The victory was sufficient," remarked artist the singer. "The cash was the extra but we didn't need the bonus, because we had the main prize. So our winning touched somebody else's life."

Recently, the MVT revealed it had rescued several grassroots venues in the South East, by placing them under local control.

The first in the city and The Croft in that location were bought under the public acquisition initiative, which is backed by Arts Council England and supporters who purchase "ownership units" in the properties.

AN
By

Adrian Nelson

A seasoned gambling analyst with over a decade of experience reviewing online casinos and advocating for responsible gaming practices.

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