Mum and teen son Mel and Jamie sang the sweetest duet on “Say Something” for their audition on Britain’s Got Talent. The pair sang A Great Big World’s hit on the show and won the audience’s heart with their moving performance, which really showed off the special bond that they shared. 15-year-old Jamie opened the song with a delicate tenor vocal with some honeyed high notes.
In time for the chorus, 44-year-old Mel then joined her voice with her son, and there’s nothing more heartwarming than a family singing together. The simple piano arrangement was an excellent choice that really let the pair’s beautiful voices shine, conveying the emotion of the song perfectly. The duet was a big hit on YouTube, attracting 9.2 million views.
What’s even more impressive is that before the audition, Mel told judge Amanda Holden that the pair had only been singing together for “a couple of weeks”, and that they’d never performed in public before. Mel explained that the pair came to audition together after Jamie applied solo, then told her “I can’t do it. Will you come and sing something with me, just to back me up?” Mum teared up after singing with her son on stage, and the pair shared a hug, earning lots of ‘awws’ from the audience.
The judges loved the duet, with David Walliams saying, “There is a very special bond, isn’t there, between mother and son. I mean, I certainly have that with my mum. It was very emotional watching that. You made a really beautiful song even more beautiful.” Alesha Dixon described the audition as poignant and praised Jamie, saying, “I think you sing with so much passion, which is so lovely to see.” In another popular performance on the show, the pair sang “Love Can Build A Bridge” later in the season.
Seeing a mother and son sing together elicited an emotional reaction from fans online, who wrote comments such as “I can’t get enough of them. It’s just tears running down my cheeks every time” and “The loveliness in the relationship between mother and son. Just touching and moving. Love your family when you can.”
After plenty of praise from all four judges, Mel and Jamie then received four yes votes from the judges. The pair made it through the following several rounds of the show, eventually competing in the final and placing 12th overall in the public vote.