Sam Fender has donated his entire £25k Mercury Prize winnings to support struggling grassroots venues, here’s why he did it and what it means for the future of live music.

Sam Fender has made a statement about the importance of grassroots music culture by donating his entire £25,000 Mercury Prize winnings to the Music Venue Trust (MVT). Fresh off winning the 2025 Mercury Prize for his album People Watching, the North Shields singer-songwriter decided to redirect the prize money to the small venues that helped shape his early career.

Fender explained that he would never have reached this point without the countless gigs he played across the North East and beyond, many of them in tiny, community-driven venues. As he put it, these spaces are “legendary”, but they are also struggling. Rising costs, reduced audience spending, and years of instability have left grassroots venues fighting for survival.

During his 2024 arena tour, he added a small levy to each ticket, raising over £100,000 for MVT to support nearly 40 grassroots venues across the UK. His continued commitment highlights how strongly he feels about keeping these spaces alive for future generations of artists.

The donation arrives at a critical moment. More than 150 UK grassroots music venues have closed their doors since early 2023, and many of those that remain are operating on razor-thin margins. MVT has repeatedly warned that without structural support, both from the industry and from policymakers, the ecosystem that nurtures new talent is at risk.

Leaders at MVT described Fender’s gesture as an “incredible” and deeply meaningful act, emphasising that artists intimately understand how vital small venues are to their development and to their communities. The donated funds will go directly toward sustaining struggling venues, supporting their operations, and keeping live music accessible.

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