Michael Bublé performed to 12,000 at Auckland's Spark Area last night, bringing along two Kiwi singers who that morning had no idea they would be performing with him.
The silky-voiced singer was having lunch with his family at the Auckland fish market on Sunday, when two buttery voices caught his attention.
In a TikTok video the 47-year-old crooner gushed over Vanessa Abernethy and Johnny Gorbey, also known as cover act 2fold, as they covered the Joe Cocker and Jennifer Warnes hit Up Where We Belong.
"We gotta sing this at the show tonight, make people go crazy," Bublé said to the duo after introducing himself.
In the same clip, he proudly reported that "they said yes" to singing with him.
Fast forward to later that night, Abernethy and Gorbey were right up against the barriers, belting the same song out with Bublé and thousands of fans.
The crooner performed Up Where We Belong with musical duo 2fold. (Source: Supplied)
Abernethy told 1News that the experience "absolutely, completely overwhelmed" her, it being the biggest performance of her life since she performed as Melissa Etheridge on the show Stars In Their Eyes.
She said her and Gorbey's fortunate encounter almost did not happen.
“We were playing at the Auckland Fish Market for their live music Sunday, we usually do one Sunday a month since Covid restrictions were lifted and just happened to be rostered on! It was also meant to be raining but instead it was beautiful," she said.
Abernethy said they had just finished an Adele song when an audience member with a cap and sunglasses on clapped especially loud, came up and told her that she had a much better voice than him.
"I heard an accent and Johnny was going to see Michael Bublé tonight, so I knew he was in town... I leaned over and asked 'are you Michael Bublé?' and he goes 'shh'," she said.
The Canadian star approached 2fold at the Auckland fish market. (Source: Breakfast)
Bublé the grabbed Gorbey's number, chatted to him ahead of the show and arranged to get the two to the front to help him perform a song.
Though the duo currently does not advertise any Bublé covers, 2fold is able to play his song Sway and Abernethy performs Feeling Good and Fever as a solo act.
"He was so down-to-Earth and personable," she recalled, "he just wanted to have lunch there with his family like a normal bloke."
"I've been in the entertainment industry for over 20 years... he told us that he had been doing what we do for 12 years before taking off, and if he'd could he'd keep on doing it just for the love of music."
The Canadian performer retold his lunchtime tale to his 12,000-strong audience after performing the song with 2fold.
"I heard that voice and I was eating my fish sticks going 'oh my god!'" Bublé said, beaming to his audience.
He praised 2fold's performance, telling his fans the song should give them "that shaky-shaky feeling" needed to get intimate later on.
Tune into Seven Sharp tonight for more on this story and to watch Hilary Barry interview Michael Bublé.
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