SHE won the Chinese version of the X-Factor and has also recorded a song based on the hit TV series Downton Abbey.

Now, singer-songwriter Mary-Jess Leaverland is honouring the memory of a 17-year-old Hampshire girl who died from a brain tumour last summer.

Mary-Jess, 21, is appearing in S o u t h a m p t o n tonight at a charity concert organised by friends and relatives of Samantha Cashen, of Dibden Purlieu.

Her father, Mike, said: “I was listening to the car radio when I heard her sing Did I Make the Most of Loving You, one of the tracks of the n e w Downton A b b e y album.

“ T h e w o r d s seemed to reflect how we felt about Sam.

“I found Mary-Jess on Twitter and invited her to take part in the concert.

She agreed, saying she was very sorry to hear about our loss.

“It was an incredible response.”

Mr Cashen said Samantha was a huge fan of Downton Abbey, filmed at Highclere Castle in Hampshire. He added that many of her friends were also taking part in the concert in aid of the Brainstrust charity.

Mary-Jess told the Daily Echo: “No parent should have to bury their child and my heart goes out to the Cashens.

“The concert is a fitting tribute to what a special daughter and human being Sam must have been, and I’m honoured to be part of the celebration of her life.”

Mary-Jess failed an audition for the XFactor but the set-back to her singing career was only temporary.

In 2009, she was studying in Nanjing when she took part in I Want to Sing to the Stars – China’s version of Simon Cowell’s hit show.

Her prize was just £900 but the publicity resulted in a major record deal, followed by the Downton Abbey album.

Samantha died last August, a few weeks before the second series began.

Last month, her father flew to the European Parliament to highlight the need for earlier diagnosis of brain tumours.

n The concert is at the Turner Sims hall of Southampton University at 7pm. Call 023 8059 5151 for tickets.