Gregory Porter has said he was delighted to let a young man “borrow” his music and lyrics for a surprise marriage proposal as he performed at Glastonbury Festival.

Tom Bowles, 28, proposed to Zoe Taylor, 29, on the Pyramid Stage while the jazz singer performed Real Good Hands.

Gregory told the crowd: “It’s a beautiful day, a special day, a special day for Tom and Zoe. Zoe, Tom’s got something he wants to say to you. Somewhere in this song I’m going to let you do your thing.”

Tom knelt down and asked his girlfriend: “Will you marry me?” before producing a ring.

Real Good Hands is about a proposal, with lyrics including: “Mama don’t you worry ’bout your daughter, ’cause you’re leaving her in real good hands, I’m a real good man.”

Gregory Porter at Glastonbury
Gregory Porter (Jonathan Short/AP/PA)

Gregory, 44, told the Press Association: “I wrote the song for myself when I was in that place that Tom was in. And so when he came to me and said, ‘Gregory, it’s time to do this thing,’ I was like: ‘Okay! Well we know what we need to do. I’ll let you borrow my songs and my lyrics and say what it is that you want to say’.”

On helping out with the proposal, he said: “It’s a lot of fun, and it comes out of my personal experience. We’re all the same – the story of you is the story of me.”

Zoe, from Dorset, was working as a production assistant and is the daughter of Gregory’s UK representative. The two have known each other for years.

“I knew Zoe before she met Tom, so it’s just been great to see her go into the relationship and now go further,” the US singer said.

The star said the crowd’s reaction was proof that people are not so cynical.

He explained: “They clapped louder for them than they did for me. So people believe in love.”

Gregory Porter on stage
Gregory Porter (Jonathan Brady/PA)

The singer said he was keeping a close eye on how the UK was handling the referendum vote to leave the EU.

“It’s definitely a shocker for the rest of the world, we just watching, we just watching,” he said.

“It will affect the rest of the world in terms of the UK is an important leader in the world and people watch and then act by example. So will this push any other countries to separate themselves from the EU? I don’t know. I hope not because I think there is some benefit to the unity of it all.

“I don’t live here so I couldn’t vote. But I’ve been watching and I’m with you, it’s my spiritual home, so I’m with you whatever you guys do.”