Prince William Once Sang on Stage with Taylor Swift and Jon Bon Jovi

How could you forget when, in 2013, Prince William shared the stage—and the microphone—with Taylor Swift and Jon Bon Jovi? Recently, the prince opened up about this moment for the first time in nearly 10 years.

In 2013, during a Centrepoint charity event at Kensington Palace, William joined the singers for a slightly nuanced version of "Livin' on a Prayer." The improvised show was finally cleared up by him: “So, around about—it must be nearly 10 years ago now—I can’t believe I’m actually telling this story. I went to a charity fundraising gala for Centrepoint, which is a young homeless charity that I am very fond of and have supported for many years. It’s an annual fundraiser, and I turn up, and Jon Bon Jovi and Taylor Swift are at the event, which nearly knocked me off my feet, as well," he said in a Christmas Special episode of Apple Fitness+'s Time to Walk series, which debuted on December 6.

“When I sat down to watch Jon Bon Jovi do his performance, I thought, ‘That’s it. My job is done. I’ll get dinner in a minute, and I might be able to have a chat with some people, and, you know, I’m off-duty a little bit now.’ Little did I think what was going to happen next. I’m sat next to Taylor Swift. She’s on my left. And after Jon does his first song, there’s a pause, and she turns to me. She puts her hand on my arm, looks me in the eye, and says, ‘Come on, William. Let’s go and sing,’” he continued. 

“To this day, I still do not know what came over me. Honestly, even now I’m cringing at what happened next, and I don’t understand why I gave in. But, frankly, if Taylor Swift looks you in the eye, touches your arm, and says, ‘Come with me…’ I got up like a puppy and went, ‘Yeah, okay, that seems like a great idea. I’ll follow you.’”

According to Prince William, he had no idea what he was doing there, especially because he didn't know most of the lyrics to the song. But as, apparently, people were enjoying it, he continued to perform even though he was nervous. William admits that despite his experience in front of crowds, he wasn't prepared to put his vocal skills on the line.

Earlier this year, Willam appeared on Apple Fitness+'s Time to Walk series, which features personal stories from influential people to inspire users to walk more. He approached Apple to participate because he was impressed with Time to Walk and their efforts to promote better mental health and well-being; three charities were chosen to receive a five-figure Apple grant: Shout, Crisis Text Line, and Lifeline.