When bass-baritone Andrew Hiers took the stage at the Northern Lights Music Festival in Aurora, audiences knew they were witnessing a performer with something special.

The rest of the country will see it on April 19 when CBS Sunday Morning airs a segment on Hiers, an opera singer who has recently gone viral for something unexpected: singing operatic car sales pitches from a dealership in Florida. His videos, blending humor with serious vocal talent, have attracted millions of views across social media.

As part of that national feature, CBS reached out to Northern Lights to request footage from the festival’s 2021 production of La Cenerentola. In that production, Hiers performed the role of Don Magnifico, bringing both comic timing and rich vocal depth to one of opera’s great character roles.

For Northern Lights audiences, this recognition comes as no surprise.

Hiers has been part of the festival’s story for more than a decade. He appeared in the festival’s first fully staged opera, La Bohème, in 2013 — an important milestone in the organization’s history. He returned again in 2015 for The Merry Widow, and once more in 2021 for La Cenerentola, each time leaving a strong impression on audiences.

His recent rise to social media fame comes after a period of real challenges. Following cancer treatment and the disruption of the pandemic, performance opportunities became scarce. In response, Hiers found a creative new outlet — bringing opera to the car lot. The result is something entirely his own: a mix of artistry, humor and accessibility that has introduced opera to audiences who might never have encountered it otherwise.

And yet, for those who have seen him on stage at Northern Lights, this moment feels like a natural extension of what he has always done — connect with audiences in a genuine and memorable way.