Andrew De Leon shocked the America’s Got Talent judges and audience when he walked onto the Austin, TX stage decked out in goth makeup and clothing then opened his mouth to deliver a pitch-perfect opera performance.

“Growing up, I was alienated because i was never interested in athletics or what everybody else in my family was interested in,” the 19-year-old closet opera singer told AGT host Nick Cannon. “Singing was always an escape. It was always a comfort zone,” said De Leon, who revealed he is self-taught and has never performed in front of anybody, not even his family.

The judges and audience, which included De Leon’s parents, who had never heard him sing, were blown away.

“I’m just so used to being rejected, and I’m not really good at anything, so this is amazing,” De Leon said after his performance, which earned him a spot in the next round of competition in Las Vegas.

Check out Andrew De Leon’s America’s Got Talent audition video below.

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