HE was persuaded to share his talent with the world by Luther, he's been nominated for his performances in the West End and now Shaun Escoffery is ready bring some soul to Manchester at the weekend.

"Oh mate, I'm really looking forward to it," said Shaun. "I've had some great times in Manchester."

Londoner Shaun grew up with and remains close friends with actor Idris Elba. It was Elba who convinced him to pursue a career in singing and acting.

Shaun is touring to promote his new album Evergreen, an album he is particularly proud of.

"I'm very excited about the album," he said. "Even when the songs were coming together I was thinking 'this is good'. When I'm working on my music it totally consumes me.

"When I was working on a track I'd have to stop and not listen to it for a few days then go back to it.

"I'm horribly self-critical but once your music is out there that's it, so when I look back in years to come I don't want to cringe. But when we recorded the songs I knew that this was an album to be proud of."

With the single When the Love is Gone being picked up by Radio 2 and a lot of industry buzz about the album, Shaun's profile as a singer has never been higher.

"It's a really exciting time for me right now," he said.

Shaun has managed to balance his singing career with his performing career. He has appeared in major stage musical productions since his teens including roles in the Lion King, Les Miserables and Tommy. He was also nominated for a Laurence Olivier Award for his work in the stage musical Parade.

"It's a huge asset to have been in the industry since my teens," he said. "When first started out I wasn't the most disciplined of individuals to say the least.

"But those early opportunities was my university and allowed me to learn my trade. I was one of the youngest in the cast and I learned a lot from everyone. That really helped prepare me for this stage of my career when I've really taken over the reins of everything."

Shaun is a fitness fanatic - he's a brown belt in the Brazilian martial art gracie jujitsu - something which was prompted by a conversation with legendary singer Chaka Khan.

"One of the first shows I was in was Mama's Got to Sing with her," he said. "She would perform these incredible vocal gymnastics every night and I asked her how she did it.

"She told me the secret was plenty of sleep and to drink plenty of water. I took that to a different level as I knew I had to be physically fit, so I started to train and really enjoyed it.

"I do martial arts, I box and wrestle - I love combat sports. Basically I like anything that scares the hell out of m. I think that's one reason I stand on stage in front of thousands of people every night

"But I want longevity in this business and contrary to what people might think about rock and rollers going out smoking,drinking and partying all the time, you just can't do that - well I certainly can't."

n Shaun Escoffery, Royal Northern College of Music, Manchester, Sunday, October 30. Details from 0161 907 5555