Tom Jones' homeless son reveals he needs help as he sings in an eerily familiar baritone voice
He may look disheveled and disgruntled with grubby jeans and tattoos but he stops passersby dead in their tracks when he opens his mouth to sing Tom Jones hit in an eerily familiar baritone voice.
As reported DailyMail, the 29-year-old performing artist on the streets of a blue-collar town in New Jersey is the music legend's illegitimate son. Despite his father's £155 million fortune, Jonathan Berkery relies on the goodwill of people to drop some spare change into his guitar case.
He stands with a signboard which reads "I Need Money (Please Help)" and goes by the name of Jon Jones in tribute to his father. He spends his nights in a homeless shelter in Hoboken and has an income of £5.50-an-hour part-time stacking shelves. Jon reveals that despite his best efforts, he has never met his famous dad.
"I don't want anything from my dad, just his recognition. Not having a father growing up was tough. All I ever wanted was his love. People think I look and sound like a younger version of my dad. I sing all his songs. People stop and stare as soon as I start singing," Jon shared.
Jon was born after Tom Jones had a three-day fling with Katherine Berkery who was then a 24-year-old model in October 1987. Sir Tom denied that he was Jon's father until it was proved by a court-ordered paternity test in the year 1989 and the singer agreed to pay £1,700 a month maintenance for his upkeep until his 18th birthday.
"There was never a birthday card, a single Christmas card, a call. I grew up with images of dad all around. But my calls and emails have gone unreturned. He wants nothing to do with me," he revealed. Sir Tom acknowledged his son's existence in 2008 and said, "It wasn't something I planned. I was tricked. I fell for the seduction."
Jon was deeply hurt by his father's words and lack of emotion. "Those words hurt. It wasn't my choice to be born. You don't get to be as famous as my father without being prepared to hurt people along the way."
His father's rejection led Jon down a dark and painful path and he suffered through a heavy drinking and drug-fuelled teenage rebellion. He even considered confronting his father at one of his concerts or even auditioning for ITV's show 'The Voice' where his father is a mentor.
"All I want is the chance to sit down with him. I truly don't want anything from him," he said.