CHER Lloyd needs to “ignore the negativity”, according to the winner of the very first series of The X Factor – who is coming to Evesham next month.

Steve Brookstein was the first winner of the popular ITV show so knows what Cher has found herself thrown into – and he has some sage advice.

“She seems like quite a sensitive person – I can relate to that,” he said. “There is a lot of negativity and jealousy out there. When you are doing something good that you enjoy doing there are going to be people who want to knock you down.

“She has got to ignore the comments and believe the truth and your music will shine through.”

Soul singer Brookstein will be at Evesham Arts Centre on Saturday, October 1, performing his new show Together with his wife Eileen Hunter, who is a jazz singer.

The talented couple, whose three-year-old son Hamish is already showing an interest in the trumpet, will be singing duets which were written and performed by great songwriting teams of the past.

“We’ve picked some of the best duets and songs we felt had been written,” said Brookstein.

“We tried to look at songs which summed up relationships from many angles – and I think a lot of people are going to relate to it.

“Also, people seeing us singing these songs because they know we are together.”

It might seem a world away from the celebrity scene that today’s X Factor stars seem to inhabit, but Brookstein says he is incredibly happy – he has his family and he has his music.

“My wife would go mad if I ended up in the Big Brother house,” he said.

“If we can make a living with the sort of music we play, we’re happy.

“We know you are never going to get millions of people who like soul and jazz.”

• For tickets call 01386 446944 or eveshamartscentre.co.uk
• Find out more about Brookstein at stevebrookstein.co.uk and his wife at eileenhunter.co.uk

• Click here for our special Vote4Cher section.