The latest episode of The Walking Dead confirms the fan theory surrounding the true identity of Beta (Ryan Hurst). Despite Beta being on The Walking Dead since season 9, Alpha's ruthless second-in-command has never revealed his face, keeping his identity a secret. Even a season 10 flashback sequence for Alpha (Samantha Morton) managed to carefully guard Beta's identity.
In The Walking Dead season 10, episode 12, titled "Walk With Us", the battle between the Hilltop and the Whisperers continues. The fighting causes many to be separated, forcing Alden (Callan McAuliffe), Kelly (Angel Theory), and Gamma (Thora Birch) to travel on their own. After being surrounded by zombies, Gamma provides a distraction for Alden and Kelly and ends up being ambushed by Beta, who has apparently been tracking her. Gamma rips off part of Beta's mask just moments before she dies. With Beta's face partially exposed, a Whisperer is able to recognize him. Beta, not willing to let anyone know who he really is, reacts by killing him instantly.
Before his death, the Whisperer makes a remark about always thinking that Beta's voice sounded familiar. This scene reveals what fans already strongly suspected, which is that Fear the Walking Dead season 5 teased Beta's identity. After a stack of vinyl records was dropped, one album cover showed the face of a bearded man with a hat, and the person in question looked remarkably similar to Beta actor Ryan Hurst. This prompted theories that The Walking Dead's Beta is actually a singer. Based on his look and the style of the album cover, it would seem that this character is either a blues musician or a country singer.
A later episode of The Walking Dead backed up this theory when Beta warned Alpha for humming a song and Alpha seemingly recognized Beta after looking at his face. In this moment, The Walking Dead suggested that Beta was famous, and now it's clear that Beta is indeed a singer. That's why Beta never takes off his mask. Being a former celebrity, Beta knows he can be easily recognized. But why is this secret so important that he's willing to kill one of his own people for it? This is one detail that hasn't been known until now.
It's possible that Beta is protective of his identity because of his devotion to the beliefs of the Whisperers and Alpha's ideas about leaving the past behind them. The Whisperers have tried to disconnect themselves from who they were before, and being a famous singer would understandably make that difficult for Beta. Beta's identity, why he decides to keep it a secret, and what drove him down this dark path are all aspects of his character that may be explored in the coming weeks, especially since Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) has killed Alpha. This will of course put all of the attention on Beta, who will likely take command of the Whisperers. Beta has always felt like the more dangerous threat of the two on The Walking Dead, and now the villain will have a chance to prove it.