Sam Fender has given the entirety of his £25k award winnings to the trust for venues, which functions to save the United Kingdom's independent concert spaces.
The star was awarded the cheque on mid-October as his third album People Watching was chosen as the outstanding release of the past year.
The musician has chosen to hand the money over to the trust, in recognition of the crucial part local spots played in his early career.
"I personally couldn't be pursuing this success if it wasn't for all the shows I did around the region, and beyond, when I was beginning," stated the artist. "These venues are legendary, but they are facing challenges."
From early 2023 onward, over 150 of these locations have ceased operations – roughly 16% of the whole industry in the UK.
Recently, major artists such as Pulp, the group Coldplay, the singer Katy Perry and Sheeran have all supported the Music Venues Trust in its attempts to support the industry, by applying a small levy to their ticket prices, which supports smaller concert halls.
Fender also joined in, collecting more than £100,000 on his live tour to assist 38 local spots across the UK.
The money helped venues that were facing imminent closure due to challenges arising from water damage, blazes and bereavements, as well as permit problems, court cases and noise complaints.
Other venues were granted monetary aid in upgrading facilities and technical equipment that positively impacted artists and fans.
"The concept that revenue from performances in large arenas supports the smaller venues, where it begins for musicians like me, is just common sense," the star has commented.
Fender is not the first artist to give his award winnings to charitable organizations.
When they earned the award in 1996 for their record Different Class, lead singer Cocker declared that the act would contribute their winnings to the charity War Child.
In 2002, rapper and singer the artist divided her bounty across several organizations, including the NSPCC and a Sickle Cell organization.
"And I contributed a thousand pounds to my local community centre, to their gymnastics program, because I did gymnastics when I was growing up and they required new equipment," she explained to outlets.
In recent years, Ezra Collective gave their winnings to the youth organization that developed their act, as well as other grassroots music organisations.
And the 1994 recipients they gave their winnings to a multiple sclerosis charity after a acquaintance was diagnosed the disease.
"Winning was sufficient," said artist Small. "The prize was the bonus but we could do without the extra, because we had the honor. So our success affected the lives of others."
Last week, the MVT revealed it had protected two grassroots venues in the South East, by placing them under public stewardship.
The Joiners in Southampton and the other in Bristol were bought under the community ownership initiative, which is funded by a national body and supporters who acquire "stakes" in the buildings.
