Opera singer's TikTok car pitch hits a sales high note

Andrew Hiers did not look like a viral marketer when he started selling cars at Boniface Hiers Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram in Cocoa, Florida. The classically trained bass-baritone was there to pay the bills, but once he began posting opera-flavored car videos on TikTok, his showroom side gig became a national curiosity and a lesson in how social media can amplify ordinary work.

Hiers took the job after cancer treatment and the COVID-19 pandemic made opera roles harder to find. In January, the day after he turned 38, he added car salesman to his resume. He has said the dealership is close to home and that the real goal was to save enough money to move to a bigger market, such as New York City or Los Angeles, where stage opportunities are more plentiful.

His credentials are not those of a typical sales floor newcomer. Hiers studied at Florida State University and Binghamton University, trained with Opera Colorado’s young artist program and the Merola Opera Program, and performed across the United States and abroad, including in Vancouver, Guadalajara and Prague. On TikTok, he has described himself as fully recovered from cancer and said he sees car sales as a way to earn money while sharpening his self-marketing and people skills.

That mix of artistry and retail has made him stand out online. Hiers writes his own lyrics but uses traditional opera melodies, including a version of Puccini’s Nessun dorma recast as Nissan dorma to promote a Nissan Rogue. One of his earliest viral clips, featuring a used Corvette, topped a million views. His videos have since piled up millions of views across TikTok and Instagram, turning him into a recognizable personality under the separate persona Luciano Carvarotti.

The attention has not yet translated neatly into commissions. One early report said Hiers had sold exactly one car as of early March 2026. Later reporting suggested he had closed two deals, including one car and one truck. A vehicle featured in his first viral Corvette video had already been sold by someone else, a reminder that internet fame and dealership traffic do not always move at the same speed.

Still, the numbers point to a bigger shift in how service jobs can function in the creator economy. Justin Jarek, the dealership’s general manager, said social media can be a powerful business tool. In Hiers’s case, it has turned a local salesman into a brand asset, with viewers urged to ask for Andrew when they walk into the showroom. The pitch is part performance, part sales tactic, and part evidence that in 2026, visibility itself can be a form of labor.