Sam Fender has handed over the entirety of his £25k award winnings to the Music Venues Trust, which operates to protect the UK's small live music spots.
The star was given the cheque on 16 October as his third album the album was declared the best record of the past year.
Fender has chosen to donate the funds to the Music Venues Trust, in acknowledgment of the vital role local spots played in his early career.
"I personally wouldn't be doing my current career if it weren't for all the shows I played around the region, and beyond, when I was beginning," said the artist. "These locations are legendary, but they are struggling."
Since the start of 2023, over 150 of these venues have shut down – about one-sixth of the entire UK sector.
Recently, well-known musicians like the band Pulp, Coldplay, Katy Perry and Ed Sheeran have all aided the trust in its attempts to support the industry, by adding a minor surcharge to their ticket prices, which goes to help smaller concert halls.
Fender also joined in, collecting in excess of £100,000 on his live tour to help 38 grassroots venues across England, Scotland, and Wales.
These funds supported spaces that were facing potential shutdown due to challenges arising from flooding, fire incidents and bereavements, as well as regulatory hurdles, court cases and sound issues.
Additional spaces were granted financial assistance in modernizing facilities and sound and lighting systems that positively impacted artists and fans.
"The notion that revenue from performances in big venues helps the smaller venues, where it kicks off for musicians like me, is just logical," Fender has said.
Fender is far from the only musician to contribute his award funds to charitable organizations.
In the band won the prize in the year 1996 for their record the album, frontman the singer declared that the group would donate their winnings to the organization the charity.
In 2002, rapper and singer she divided her award across multiple charities, including the NSPCC and a Sickle Cell charity.
"And I contributed a £1,000 to Highgate Newtown, to their classes, because I trained in gymnastics when I was younger and they required new equipment," she told a publication.
Previously, the band gave their winnings to the local youth club that developed their band, as well as other local music groups.
Additionally winners that year M People contributed their prize to a MS organization after a close contact was found to have the disease.
"Winning was sufficient," stated vocalist the singer. "The prize was the extra but we could do without the extra, because we had the main prize. So our victory touched another person's life."
Last week, the MVT revealed it had protected several local spots in that region, by transferring them to community ownership.
One venue in that area and The Croft in Bristol were bought under the community ownership scheme, which is funded by Arts Council England and enthusiasts who buy "stakes" in the buildings.
