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The musician donates twenty-five thousand pounds Mercury Prize to independent live spaces

Sam Fender holding his trophy in his hometown
He won the Mercury Prize last month in his hometown

The artist has given the complete sum of his £25,000 Mercury Prize winnings to the MVT, which works to save the UK's independent music venues.

The star was presented with the cheque on mid-October as his third album the album was named the outstanding release of the previous year.

Fender has decided to donate the funds to the Music Venues Trust, in appreciation of the vital role grassroots venues played in his early career.

"As an artist wouldn't be doing my current career if it weren't for all the gigs I played around the area, and elsewhere, when I was just getting going," stated the artist. "These locations are legendary, but they are facing challenges."

From early 2023 onward, more than 150 of these spaces have ceased operations – roughly 16% of the whole industry in the UK.

Over the past year, top acts like Pulp, Coldplay, the singer Katy Perry and Sheeran have all supported the MVT in its initiatives to help venues survive, by including a minor surcharge to their admission fees, which supports local stages.

He also joined in, collecting more than £100,000 on his recent tour to support thirty-eight local spots across England, Scotland, and Wales.

The donation supported venues that were facing possible closure due to issues caused by flooding, fire incidents and family tragedies, as well as permit problems, legal disputes and sound issues.

Other venues were granted financial assistance in improving amenities and gear that positively impacted artists and concertgoers.

"The idea that funds from concerts in large arenas helps the independent spots, where it all starts for artists like me, is just common sense," the star has stated.

Pulp in concert
Pulp are one example who gave their Mercury Prize winnings to good causes

Fender is not the first artist to contribute his honor winnings to good deeds.

When they received the award in the mid-90s for their record their work, vocalist the singer stated that the group would give their winnings to the organization War Child.

In 2002, artist Ms Dynamite divided her prize across multiple charities, including the NSPCC and a Sickle Cell organization.

"Additionally, I gave a thousand pounds to the center, to their gymnastics program, because I trained in gymnastics when I was growing up and they needed better apparatus," she told the media.

In recent years, Ezra Collective contributed their funds to the community center that supported their band, in addition to other grassroots music organisations.

And winners that year the group donated their award to a charity for MS after a friend was diagnosed the illness.

"Receiving the award was sufficient," said vocalist Small. "The cash was the extra but we could do without the cherry, because we had the main prize. So our winning affected somebody else's life."

In the past week, the MVT revealed it had rescued a couple of local spots in that region, by transferring them to public stewardship.

The Joiners in Southampton and the second in Bristol were acquired under the Own Our Venues program, which is funded by a national body and enthusiasts who purchase "shares" in the venues.

The writer

Daniel Banks

Liam van der Berg is a seasoned sports journalist with over a decade of experience covering European and global sporting events.

Sunny Sports Daily

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