When social media entertainer Kevin Freshwater approached a 30-year-old singer in a London train station and asked her to finish the lyrics to Lady Gaga’s “Shallow,” he never imagined her performance would render him speechless.
While others Freshwater asked forgot the lyrics or seemed downright irritated, Charlotte Awbery gave it her all. And that chance encounter has now reached 28 million views on Facebook and 25 million views on Twitter.
The viral cover drove the original song back into the top 40 on iTunes, Insider reported. Awbery now has hundreds of thousands of followers — Ariana Grande is among them — and is verified on Instagram.
Just over a week after the video went viral, Awbery performed the entire song live on the “Ellen DeGeneres Show.”
The singer — who was a little starstruck sitting next to DeGeneres — shared that she was on her way to meet a friend when Freshwater approached her.
Freshwater also attended the “Ellen Show” taping. In the clip he says Awbery’s performance moved him to tears. The two said on the show they hope to keep in touch for the rest of their lives.
Awbery said her dad had always told her to “sing wherever you are” and “never, ever give up.” That advice has paid off — literally. On the show, DeGeneres presented Awbery with a one-year underground pass and 10,000 pounds.