‘Feliz Navidad’: Resurfaced Video Shows Pope Leo XIV's Hidden Singing Talent

A TikTok clip of Pope Leo XIV belting out a Christmas classic confirms what the world first learned on his inaugural Sunday as pope: Leo has some serious pipes, and he isn’t shy about using them in se

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A resurfaced video from 2014 shows a Catholic bishop clapping and singing Feliz Navidad with a youth band at a parish Christmas party —and that bishop is none other than the man who is now Pope Leo XIV.

The footage, filmed in Peru in 2014, shows Leo (then Bishop Robert Prevost) belting out the Christmas classic to cheers from the audience.

The TikTok footage has delighted Catholics worldwide and confirmed that Leo’s musical gifts run deep.

Pope Leo XIV greets the faithful from the Vatican balcony shortly after his election. Even before he donned the papal white, Leo was known to break into song. A leaked video shows him singing “Feliz Navidad” as a bishop in Peru.

As surprising as it is, that throwback clip merely confirmed what the faithful witnessed on Leo’s first Sunday as pope.

On May 11, 2025 — just days after his election — Pope Leo stepped onto the St. Peter’s balcony to lead the Regina Caeli. Instead of reciting the prayer, the new pontiff surprised and delighted the crowd by chanting it in a rich, confident voice.

Pilgrims below gasped, then broke into applause at the musical surprise.

Pope Leo XIV chants the Regina Caeli from St. Peter’s balcony on May 11, 2025. Rather than recite the prayer, the then 69-year-old pontiff sang it — earning an eruption of applause from the surprised crowd.

For Leo, singing isn’t just a party trick — it’s part of his ministry, and it even sparked a new initiative at the Vatican.

His impromptu Regina Caeli solo that day inspired a program called “Let’s Sing With the Pope,” inviting Catholics everywhere to learn the sacred chants he loves to sing.

Fr. Robert Mehlhart — who heads the Vatican’s sacred music institute — says Leo “has a lovely voice” and was already “an experienced singer” after years of chanting prayers with his fellow friars.

Leo’s musical talent runs in the family.

His late mother, Mildred Prevost, was a devoted church musician who played the organ and was a prominent contralto in Chicago — even performing at the 1941 Chicagoland Music Festival and leading the “Ave Maria” at Mass.

With a role model like that, it’s no wonder young Robert Prevost grew up ready to sing out.

Now the whole world has heard Pope Leo’s voice.

That Feliz Navidad throwback is the cherry on top, revealing a down-to-earth pope who isn’t afraid to grab the microphone and spread Christmas cheer.

As the Peruvian crowd’s reaction showed, Leo XIV can carry a tune and lift spirits at the same time.

And whether he’s chanting a hymn from the Vatican balcony or strumming a carol in a parish hall, this singing pope is turning the joy of the Gospel into music for all to hear.