Andrea Bocelli might just be the most popular Italian on Earth. The 54-year-old operatic tenor has sold more than 80 million records, sung for every world leader this side of Kim Jong Un and yeah, has a duet with J. Lo on his new album, which debuted at No. 2 on the charts earlier this year.
So when he crashed Easter Mass at Miami Beach's St. Patrick Catholic Church yesterday and shook the stained glass with some hymns, the faithful went a little bananas.
Parishioners at St. Patrick's apparently had no advance warning that Bocelli would be part of the services. When they lined up for communion, the blind tenor walked to the pulpit and started singing:
Out of an abundance of caution, Riptide should note we haven't been able to confirm that this is in fact Bocelli. St. Patricks (and the rest of the Miami Diocese) is closed for Easter Monday and Bocelli's reps haven't returned our email yet.
Update: That was indeed Bocelli. Mary Ross Agosta, a spokeswoman for the diocese, tells Riptide that "Bocelli attended mass and asked if he could sing the communion song. Panis Angelicus is what he sang."
(h/t Jennifer Sabin Ley-Soto, who shot the videos posted above.)
Follow Miami New Times on Facebook and Twitter @MiamiNewTimes.
