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…