WHO THE HELL IS?

Vance the Man: Northern Ireland may have found itself a new soul legend in the form of this 32-year-old singer- songwriter-emoter from Bangor, Co Down. Foy Best Vance is a bluesman, a soul survivor, a rocker, a punk and folk hero all rolled into one. He's played supporting slots with KT Tunstall, Taj Mahal, Dave Matthews, Joss Stone and Bonnie Raitt, who was blown away by the northern native with the voice that can make you laugh and cry in the space of a song. He's also toured with Pete Townshend, joining him onstage for a rock'n'roll jam session. Can't be long before the Belfast Cowboy himself comes a-lookin' for this talented young gun.

Natural blues: If some of Vance's songs conjure up the blues and gospel of the deep south, that may not be a coincidence. Vance is a true-blue son of a preacher man, and when he was just a year old his dad took the family off to Oklahoma and began preaching in churches all over the southern states. Young Foy particularly loved the exuberant atmosphere of the black churches, and absorbed the soul, blues and roots music of the deep south. Papa was also a musician, and when he realised that his son could sing, he taught him some 12-bar blues on the guitar. "[ He] would often initiate a sing-song when the family were together," recalls Foy. "But what stood out more to me were the times you would find him alone in a room singing and playing guitar. Eyes closed and feeling it, this was something different."

Last rites: The family moved back to Bangor after a few years and Foy grew up among the tough working class estates, where music and fame seemed a million miles away. He toured Northern Ireland and Scotland as part of a soul-funk combo, but found the endless slog soul-destroying. Then he met and fell in love with a young Belfast artist, Joanne Shaw, whom he describes as his muse. The couple married in Lanzarote, where Vance had been offered a regular slot performing in a local bar, but their newlywed bliss was interrupted by the news of the death of Foy's dad. "When my father died all these songs just started pouring out of me; my father's passing had left a huge gap that I had to fill."

Fresh start: Vance's songs reached the ears of Brian Freshwater and Jacqueline Hughes, the team who helped bring Joss Stone to stardom. The pair went to see him live, and, says Freshwater, got goose- bumps listening to Vance's astonishing voice and poignant songs. An EP, Live Sessions and the Birth of the Toilet Tour, and a slot at SXSW festival in Austin, Texas gained him a wider fanbase. Two sold-out nights in Ronnie Scott's in London confirmed his appeal. You can also hear two of Foy's tunes, Homebird and Gabriel and the Vagabond, on the US TV series Gray's Anatomy. Vance's new EP, Watermelon Oranges, is out now.