Will.i.am Responds With Tears As Tom Jones Loses The Voice UK Job
Originally published by AllHipHop Read the original
Will.i.am is the last original coach left on The Voice UK, and he’s absolutely devastated to lose his partner in crime.
Sir Tom Jones, the 86-year-old Welsh legend who’s been judging alongside him since the show’s inception, just got axed by ITV, and the Black Eyed Peas frontman responded to the news with nothing but crying emojis under Tom’s Instagram announcement.
This isn’t just about losing a colleague. It’s about watching an institution get dismantled for reasons that don’t add up.
ITV claims the decision came down to “financial difficulty with insurance,” but that explanation’s been getting roasted across the industry.
Tom himself called out the contradiction, noting that producers are now saying they wanted to “refresh” the show with a new coaching lineup, which is corporate speak for “we’re going younger.”
The network offered him a drastically reduced role where he’d make occasional appearances without actually being involved from the start, and Tom made it clear he wasn’t interested in that kind of setup.
“There’s never a good time to fire an 86-year-old who’s still pretty good at his job,” he posted, and the internet collectively agreed.
What makes this move particularly brutal is who Tom Jones actually is. This isn’t some aging has-been.
He’s a six-decade music legend with over 100 million records sold, a Grammy Award winner, and a man Queen Elizabeth II knighted in 2006 for his contributions to music.
His catalog includes “It’s Not Unusual,” “What’s New Pussycat?,” “Delilah,” and “Green Green Grass of Home.”
He’s performed in Las Vegas consistently for decades and maintained a touring schedule that would exhaust people half his age.
The backlash has been immediate and intense. British model and artist Jeny Howorth commented publicly, “How Bloody Dare They! I only watched because of you.”
Petitions have circulated demanding ITV reconsider. The message being sent is clear: experience and longevity matter.
ITV’s statement tried to smooth things over by saying they “loved working” with Tom over nine years, but actions speak louder than corporate pleasantries.