In a major act of solidarity with struggling music venues, Sam Fender has donated his entire £25,000 Mercury Prize winnings to the Music Venue Trust (MVT). The announcement came shortly after his Mercury Prize win for People Watching in October. The donation aims to provide vital financial relief to the UK’s grassroots music venues, many of which are fighting to stay open amid rising operational costs and closures.
The Mercury Prize-winning artist Sam Fender confirmed that his £25,000 prize money will go directly to the Music Venue Trust, a UK charity supporting small independent venues. The move comes as over 150 grassroots venues have shuttered since early 2023 — roughly 16% of the UK’s live music circuit.
Fender made the announcement following his victory in London, highlighting that this contribution would “go straight to the venues that helped shape my career.”
Artist’s Statement and Industry Reaction
Fender’s connection to the grassroots circuit is deeply personal. “Those small stages in Newcastle and across the North East gave me everything,” Fender said in a brief statement. “If we lose them, we lose the soul of British music.”
The Music Venue Trust praised the donation as “transformational,” noting that it will fund urgent repairs, equipment upgrades, and emergency grants. Other artists, including Ed Sheeran and Arctic Monkeys, have also voiced support for similar initiatives.
Impact on the UK Music Landscape
This donation extends Fender’s ongoing commitment to venue preservation. Earlier in 2024, he raised over £100,000 for the MVT’s Own Our Venues campaign. Industry analysts say Fender’s gesture will likely spark renewed attention from both fans and policymakers toward the sector’s financial crisis.
Grassroots venues are often the first performance platform for emerging talent — a space that shaped careers like Adele, Coldplay, and Florence Welch. Fender’s actions are seen as an investment in ensuring future generations of British artists have the same opportunities.
What’s Next for Sam Fender and the MVT
The Music Venue Trust confirmed that the donated funds will be distributed to high-risk venues before year-end. Fender, meanwhile, is expected to continue his partnership with MVT and may launch a new campaign in 2026 to expand funding sources.
His donation, though symbolic, underscores a growing movement among artists to directly reinvest in the infrastructure that sustains live music.
