Young Woman Starts Singing As Tom Jones Grabs Hand For 'Dirty Dancing' Song That Brings Down The House

Mar 11, 2021

Reality television talent competitions are the latest way in which aspiring artists aim to get discovered. Not only do you audition in front of the judges, but you are also auditioning in front of millions of viewers at home. Although it can be nerve-wracking, you can be well on your way to stardom if you manage to impress.

When Bethzienna Williams appeared on "The Voice: UK" in 2019, she did not expect that her path to stardom included a duet with Tom Jones performing the song "Cry to Me." After the budding songstress announced which song she'd be performing, the legendary Welsh singer perked up and asked her how she knew it in the first place. She admitted to being a huge "Dirty Dancing" fan — in which the song appears — before Jones says that he loves the song too and has actually performed it himself.

Jones is then egged on by his fellow coach Jennifer Hudson to sing it himself. After asking if Williams would mind if he sang it, she yells in sheer delight that she'd love it. What happens next is a pure joy to watch, as Jones begins his version of the song, before it turns into a duet with Williams. His fellow coaches and some of the audience even get in on the fun too, standing and dancing along. Before the song is over, there's singing, dancing and cheering from fellow coaches and the crowd — it turns into a real good time very quick! Here's how it went down.

On the popular show "The Voice UK" contestants audition in front of a panel of judges including will.i.am, Hudson, Jones and Olly Murs. These judges determine who moves on to the next round of the competition. They also get to share the fun with the contestants along the way.

In one episode of the show, singer and actress Williams got to perform with the beloved Jones.

The Welsh musician needs no introduction. Across multiple generations, his smooth low baritone voice has become synonymous with romance and love — his playful yet sexy songs "It's Not Unusual," "What's New Pussycat" and "She's A Lady" are among many in his long, illustrious repertoire. His breakout hit "It's Not Unusual" came out all the way back in 1965 — that's over 55 years ago — and ever since Jones' career has gone from strength to strength. 

Now a coach on "The Voice UK," Jones has been able to show audiences what he does best, as it's not the first time he's broken out into song on the show. In 2020, after being persuaded by Murs, Jones sang his own hit song "It's Not Unusual" to the audience on the show. It was a joyous moment for everyone and proved that even at 80 years old, Jones still has the vocal talents that made him famous. Thankfully that incident wasn't the only time the Welsh singer treated both the studio and home audience to his singing — his duet with Williams on the "Dirty Dancing" classic was another such example.

The conversation began when Jones asked Williams how she was familiar with the song "Cry to Me" by Solomon Burke. Williams said she became a fan of the song because it was from "Dirty Dancing," one of her favorite movies.

Jones then revealed that he also loves that song and in fact has performed it himself, having sung it through the summer on-stage. Instantly, Jones' fellow coach Hudson says to him, "C'mon, let us hear," before the audience begins to cheer. 

The judges then began to encourage Jones to hop up on stage with Williams to sing it with her.

Surprisingly, Jones agreed to the request after asking Williams if she'd mind if he sang it. Her answer is what everyone else must have been thinking, as she screamed, "I would love that!" Not a moment had passed before he'd been handed a microphone and the music began to play. The song's infectious beat had the crowd and fellow coaches in great spirits, with many standing and clapping along.

After Jones started the song off strong, Williams joined in and only added to it. Soon, the two were harmonizing and clearly having a ball singing together, despite having only just met. As if they'd had it planned all along, the two began to walk closer together and even joined hands when the lyrics of the song went, "You see, Come take my hand, and baby, won't you walk with me?" They even began to dance as they stood there together, clearly lost in the moment.

But Jones and Williams weren't the only ones dancing — Hudson was dancing in her seat while recording the incredible moment on her phone, will.i.am was standing and dancing alongside Jones and Williams and Murs got up at this point too and began dancing with a woman from the audience! Everyone in the crowd was standing and clapping too, making the moment seem like a completely unorchestrated singing and dance party that just happened out of nowhere. The energy was clearly infectious in the studio that day, and it really showed in the video.

At the end of the lighthearted but emotional performance, Jones and Williams embraced warmly. What a moment to be a part of and all because Williams decided to audition for "The Voice UK!" She was clearly delighted and sang her heart out along with Jones. Everyone in the audience was thrilled with the surprise performance and now you can watch it below, too.

Shows such as "The Voice" offer incredible opportunities to the contestants who bravely put themselves out there, but to duet with a bonafide singing legend in front of a live TV audience on your audition? That's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Williams is clearly no novice and that showed when she held her own with the inimitable Jones. The singer ended up making the finals of the show, proving that she had the talent to back up her performance all along. Now, here's hoping Jones and the other judges continue to bless the audience with impromptu performances like this one again!

What did you think about Tom Jones and Bethzienna Williams' impromptu duet? After you get the chance to appreciate this performance, be sure to spread the magic to everyone else that you know.