Rising British musician Tom Odell was once so broke he was forced to live in his car.

The BRIT Award winner, 22, has revealed he moved from his home in Sussex, England to London in a bid to land a record deal, but he ran out of money and survived by shacking up in an old Skoda.

He tells Britain's Daily Star newspaper, "I borrowed a knackered (old) Skoda off my gran and spent a year basically living in it, driving it around to any unsigned gig I could play."

He was eventually discovered by British pop star Lily Allen and signed to her record label. Odell will pick up the coveted Critics' Choice prize at the BRIT Awards in London on Wednesday night (20Feb13).