The concept behind The Masked Singer sounds totally silly: celebrities wear full-body costumes that fully hide their faces then belt out tunes in disguise. Audience members, viewers, and judges must then evaluate the performance, along with clever and sometimes misdirecting clues (given with a disguised voice), to try and figure out who is behind the mask. The show premiered on Fox in 2019, and a second season just wrapped up with a third set to debut after the Super Bowl on February 2, 2020.
To date, the show has seen 28 celebrities dressed as everything from a butterfly to a thingamajig, and including singers, talk show hosts, athletes, and actors. But which ones have been the best performers? Not surprisingly, most are those who have great voices because they are professional singers. But a few might surprise you.
The Black Widow – Season 2 (Raven Symone)
It was revealed that the woman dressed as the black widow was actually Raven Symone, a child actor and singer known for her roles in kids’ series That’s So Raven and Black-ish. She lasted all the way to the sixth episode thanks, in large part, to her huge personality.
Symone gave every performance her all and had the judges guessing who could be the jokester behind the mask. She wasn’t only a great performer, though – she has some amazing singing chops, too!
The Skeleton – Season 2 (Paul Shaffer)
Shaffer apparently spent a lot of time studying the mannerisms of comedy icon Martin Short to fool the judges into thinking he was him. And he did an amazing job in doing so. The Skeleton emerged as one of the funniest characters in the second season, and he lasted until the fourth episode before he was unmasked after singing Jet’s “Are You Gonna Be My Girl.”
His performances always had the audience on their feet and laughing hysterically. He was one of the most entertaining to watch of both seasons.
The Flamingo – Season 2 (Adrienne Baillon)
Baillon, formerly of The Cheetah Girls, is no stranger to singing and dancing. And singing with no one knowing her identity proved that she is a fabulous vocalist who can carry any tune. But her performance level was on point as well as she danced and shook her pink flamingo features around.
She placed third, proving that her mix of heartfelt and exciting performances of tunes like “Footloose,” “Never Enough,” and “Lady Marmalade” had everyone thoroughly impressed.
The Thingamajig – Season 2 (Victor Oladipo)
Judge Ken Jeong’s one correct guess in two seasons, Oladipo had judge Nicole Scherzinger blushing at every performance where he sang a touching or sweet tune as though he were serenading a lover.
He didn’t sing any upbeat tunes nor do any choreographed dances. But he knew just how to work the audience such that they were melting at his feet as he crooned songs like “Easy,” “Rainbow,” and “Haven’t Met You Yet.” So it’s a surprise that he lasted all the way to episode 11.
The Leopard – Season 2 (Seal)
Going out during the same episode as Oladipo, the Leopard was full of personality and theatrics not only through each performance but even before and after. He was never out of character.
Revealed to be legendary singer Seal, the Leopard had viewers mesmerized as he sang songs like “Big Spender,” Don’t Cha,” and “Stitches.” And while his voice was raspy yet sweet (how did they not figure out it was Seal?) his performance was just as enthralling.
The Monster – Season 1 (T-Pain)
Winner of the first season, T-Pain's adorable monster costume and heartfelt background commentary had viewers, the audience, and judges rooting for him from the get-go. T-Pain didn’t dance around but he did deliver a song with a beautifully clear and gorgeous voice week after week.
He sang songs like “Don’t Stop Me Now” and “I Don’t Want to Be,” but also wasn’t afraid to rock out with songs like “I Love Rock ‘n’ Roll” and “American Woman.” But the performance that really captured the hearts of viewers was his heart-wrenching rendition of Sam Smith’s “Stay With Me” during week eight.
The Rottweiler – Season 2 (Chris Daughtry)
Not a single judge guessed the identity of Daughtry, a former contestant on reality competition series American Idol and Grammy-winning music artist. Daughtry was one of the most consistent performers on the series with a solid voice. But he also knew how to work a stage, which suggested that he had a singing and performing background.
Every performance was on point with judges guessing he was a boy bander given his comfort level with the stage and performance quality. Some of his most memorable performances: Bruno Mars’ “Grenade” and Sia’s “Alive.”
The Peacock - Season 1 (Donny Osmond)
How could a list of the best performers on any show not include the incomparable consummate performer Donny Osmond? Dressed as the Peacock, he came out of the gate, guns blazing to let everyone know he meant business. Every performance was like it was on Broadway. He was theatrical, worked the stage like a pro, and had everyone excited to see what he would do next.
He started off with “The Greatest Show,” fitting for his performance style, and ended with “Shake a Tail Feather,” which had him named runner-up.
The Rabbit – Season 1 (Joey Fatone)
Fatone had everyone fooled because, while it was clearly someone with boy band experience under the rabbit costume, no one believed it was him. But week after week, he broke out some seriously awesome choreographed dance moves to go along with songs like Bell Biv DeVoe’s “Poison,” (one of his best) and Livin’ la Vida Loca.”
He was high energy and got everyone moving and dancing along. And while his later performances shifted too low-key for viewers’ liking, leading him to be eliminated in week eight, he was still one of the best performers to date.
The Fox – Season 2 (Wayne Brady)
By a landslide, Brady’s Fox was the best performer of both seasons to date. Not only did he have a buttery smooth voice through every performance, but he sang a variety of genres, rapped, and even sang his own unique covers of songs like “Blame It.”
He did some crazy dance breaks in between, and had one of the best senses of humor, both during his performances and as the judges tried to guess his identity. Some of his best performances included “Try a Little Tenderness,” which led to his final win, and “Every Little Step.”