INTERNATIONAL coffee chain Caffè Nero's Artist of the Month will be visiting Cumbria for a free show this month.

Singer-songwriter Steve Young will be performing live at the café in Market Place, Kendal, on Thursday January 19.

Caffè Nero selects a musician for the monthly title, with the recipient having their music played in more than 650 outlets across the UK each day.

As part of the programme, Young will also play sets at more than 30 stores in January and February.

The free show in Kendal starts at noon, and you can print off a voucher - which can be found at www.steveyounguk.com - which entitles you to complimentary coffee and a free album download.

Young is a London-based solo artist whose music is a mixture of folk, country and acoustic rock. His career has included working with some well-known artists, including TV appearances with Lionel Richie and Peter Andre, which soon led to full-time touring duties with world famous names such as Darren Hayes of Savage Garden. He co-wrote Hayes' album Secret Codes & Battleships with in 2012, and the subsequent took him to major venues all around the world, including the Royal Albert Hall and Wembley Arena.

As a solo artist, Steve's notable performances include London O2, opening for Nashville country star Carlene Carter, and Brit Award-winner Tom Odell.

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His music has been aired on regional BBC Radio as well as Radio 4 and 6 Music.

Young is also a founder member of Ramin Karimloo's Broadgrass Band, who are playing at The Forum, in Barrow, later in the evening on Thursday 19.

Caffè Nero aims to promote grass roots music in the UK, encouraging a tranquil, mellow morning atmosphere, typically playing light classical or opera before 11am and then pick up tempo with Latin music or jazz which moves to acoustic and other cool genres in the afternoon.

For the Kendal date, Young will be performing from his debut album, Troubadour, which was released last year thanks to a crowdfunding campaign.

This month he will be releasing his third single from the album - a remixed and remastered version of In My Dreams, which has enjoyed radio play around the world.