Beverley Knight: Win Tickets for York Barbican, Friday 3rd June 2016

If you watched Later... with Jools on BBC2 recently you will have seen British soul singer Beverley Knight singing at the piano with Jools. It is hard not to be impressed by her infectious personality and excellent singing voice.

As well as playing the lead role in the musical, The Bodyguard, in London, she has a successful solo career and has taken a break form appearing in the musical to record a new album and go out on tour again. The tour visits York Barbican on Friday 3 June and is in support of Beverley's new album, Soulsville which is released on East West Records on 10 June.

The three time MOBO winner went to Memphis to record the new album in February, which takes in some new songs and a handful of classics. The studio was where Al Green recorded most of his classic songs and where Mark Ronson and Bruno Mars recorded Uptown Funk.

The album includes some interesting collaborations too such as with Jamie Cullum on the track, Private Number, with Jools Holland on Hound Dog and with original Memphis soulman, Sam Moore with the Sam and Dave classic, Hold On I'm Coming.

I caught up with Beverley ahead of the tour for a chat.

WHY HAVE YOU DECIDED TO LEAVE THE MUSICALS AND GO BACK ON TOUR?

I am just taking a break from the musicals, the tour is to go with the new album which I'm very excited about. I did Memphis The Musical and then got offered The Bodyguard after that but it will be a change to go out on tour again as I've missed it very much.

WHAT CAN WE EXPECT AT THE YORK GIG?

I will be performing tracks off my new album, Soulsville, some of my old tracks and maybe a few surprises. I'm looking forward to going out on tour again, it's been such a long time since I did a UK tour.

YOU ALWAYS SEEM SO COMFORTABLE ON STAGE

Thank you. I am most comfortable on stage, it holds no fear or apprehension for me, I always give 100% and I like to move around on stage, although you might have noticed that I like wearing my heels but that does not stop me from playing form one end of the stage to the other.

WILL YOU GO BACK TO APPEARING IN A MUSICAL AFTER THE TOUR ENDS?

Yes, I am going back to appear in The Bodyguard at the beginning on July in London. It would be good if I could run the two things concurrently (the solo career and the musicals). With the musicals you are doing the same every night and it is very regimented whereas on the tour I can be myself.

You never know what life will give you, when Andrew Lloyd Webber asked me to play Grizabella in Cats it was a chance I couldn't turn down, you never know what's coming up but I'm looking forward to the tour and the gig in York, I've played some great gigs in Yorkshire and it will be good to come back.

Beverley Knight appears at the York Barbican on Friday 3 June. Tickets available from:

www.yorkbarbican.co.uk

Telephone: 0844 854 2757

Please enter your email address below so we can contact 2 sets of winners directly.