ST. JOHN’S - A musical duo in St. John’s is still buzzing after a chance encounter allowed them to share the spotlight with an industry legend — Kesha — at a hotel bar. The pop star sang a song with singer Julia Dawson and guitarist Bruce Smith about one hour before she took the stage on her own — in front of thousands of people at the Churchill Park Music Festival, a yearly concert series in the city. “I was like, ‘Oh my God! It’s Kesha next to me, like two feet from my face!’” said Dawson. “She sang the entire song with us, I sang the same verse probably three or four times because I just couldn’t get anything else out.” The pair said Kesha, along with some of her staff and dancers, was about to leave the JAG Hotel in downtown St. John’s on July 16 when the singer took notice of the duo on stage. At first, Dawson said, she thought the woman was a Kesha fan headed to the big show in the city — not the pop star herself. “She runs up to the front of the stage and she was like, ‘Can I sing with you?,’ Dawson recalled. “I was like, sure, still not clicking in who it was.” “Then she started singing with us and she was harmonizing and singing and I was like, oh my God, it’s Kesha.” All three sang Come Together by The Beatles before Kesha left for her show. Smith said it all happened about an hour and fifteen minutes before Kesha took the stage near Churchill Square in St. John’s. “It’s totally incredible,” Smith said. “And once she came on stage, you know, she had the vibe going, she was dancing, and it just felt incredibly natural because she’s such a powerful singer and so was Julia.” Kesha even posted about the experience on social media writing that Dawson had an “incredible voice” adding “I was stunned!” The pop star’s group recorded the song and the 19-year-old music student at Memorial University is hopeful that further contact and opportunities might come from the chance encounter. “I’m trying desperately to get this video. Like so hard,” she said. “I’m DM-ing on Instagram, I’m reaching out, I posted and tagged her on Instagram, on TikTok, on every social media.” “This is insane, it’s just so crazy.” Smith also studied at Memorial University, and like Dawson, also specialized in classical music. The pair have been performing together more frequently since the beginning of the year — and will be back at the JAG Hotel in St. John’s in September. “I hope it brings more recognition to the work that we’re doing,” Smith said. “The dream would be to go on tour, and show people my music,” Dawson added. The encounter almost didn’t happen. Dawson said she was even considering cancelling on her appearance and going to the Kesha concert in St. John’s herself, standing alongside thousands of others at the outdoor event. Instead, she sang shoulder to shoulder with a pop star. “Imagine if I would have went to the concert to see Kesha,” she said. “I just would have missed this crazy experience. And it was just insane.”
