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The artist has handed over the full amount of his £25k Mercury Prize cash to the Music Venues Trust, which functions to protect the UK's small music venues.

He was awarded the award on 16 October as his third album People Watching was named the top album of the previous year.

He has opted to hand the money over to the MVT, in recognition of the essential function grassroots venues played in his initial steps.

"I would not have achieved this success if it weren't for all the gigs I performed around the North East, and beyond, when I was just getting going," said the artist. "These locations are legendary, but they are in difficulty."

From early 2023 onward, over 150 of these spaces have shut down – roughly 16% of the whole industry in the UK.

Recently, major artists including Pulp, Coldplay, Katy Perry and Ed Sheeran have all aided the MVT in its attempts to help venues survive, by including a small levy to their ticket prices, which benefits independent venues.

He also joined in, generating more than £100,000 on his live tour to assist 38 grassroots venues across Britain.

The donation supported locations that were confronting potential shutdown due to issues caused by flooding, fire incidents and personal losses, as well as regulatory hurdles, legal disputes and noise complaints.

Some locations were granted monetary aid in improving facilities and sound and lighting systems that positively impacted performers and audiences.

"The concept that money from performances in big venues backs the local stages, where it all starts for performers like me, is just sensible," the star has said.

The musician is far from the only musician to give his honor winnings to charitable organizations.

In they won the prize in the mid-90s for their album the album, lead singer Jarvis Cocker declared that the band would contribute their winnings to the organization the charity.

During 2002, rapper and singer she divided her prize between several good causes, including the NSPCC and a Sickle Cell charity.

"Additionally, I contributed a thousand pounds to my local community centre, to their classes, because I did gymnastics when I was younger and they required new equipment," the artist explained to outlets.

Two years ago, the band contributed their prize money to the community center that nurtured their band, as well as other independent music bodies.

And winners that year the group gave their award to a MS organization after a friend was found to have the disease.

"The victory was sufficient," stated artist the singer. "The prize was the cherry on top but we didn't need the extra, because we had the honor. So our winning touched somebody else's life."

In the past week, the MVT announced it had rescued two grassroots venues in south-east England, by placing them under local control.

The first in that area and the second in Bristol were acquired under the Own Our Venues scheme, which is funded by the arts council and enthusiasts who acquire "shares" in the venues.