Double Elimination Reveals Funk Legend, Comedy Bad Girl

That meant that by the end of this hour, three masks would become on, with the champion moving on to the quarter-finals in three weeks time. But who was it? Goldfish, Starfish and Ugly Sweater had already surviving two weeks of competition as they prepared to take on the music of Queen.

This group has had the internet more stumped than usual, though they were feeling a little more confident about who these celebrities might ben after last week’s batch of clues. Could they figure out tonight’s unmasked celebrities before their big reveals?

Would the right person win the Group A scepter or would there be another shocker like there was last week when the adorable — but vocally less gifted — Starfish outlasted both Lovebird (Colton Underwood) and the impressive Koala (DeMarcus Ware)?

Well, there’s only one way to find out, isn’t there?

Let’s jump right in with this week’s mask. And don’t worry, before we get to the shocking unmasking(s), we’re going to make you power through the terrible (and occasionally good) guesses made by our illustrious panel of Robin Thicke, Jenny McCarthy, Ken Jeong and Rita Ora first. We do this because we love … to torture you.

Along with the panel’s guesses, we’ll be sharing some internet speculation, too, so if you don’t want to be potentially spoiled (because they are very good at this), you may want to skip past the guesses sections.

(“We Are the Champions,” Queen) Right away, this trio appeared to make it pretty clear which two of them are actual singers, and which one is a bundle of fun … but really just doing this for fun. She’s got one of the cutest costumes ever and she brings great energy, but she was definitely outclassed on this one with both Ugly Sweater and Goldfish really shining. Of course, they were given the parts to shine, but that’s because they could pull them off. And no matter what, only one mask advances to the quarterfinals.

(“I Want to Break Free,” Queen) Ugly Sweater might have lost the lyrics toward the end, but he ad-libbed his way to a big, dramatic finale. He doesn’t have the vocal strength that he might have as a younger singer, but he’s still a dynamic and engaging vocalist. There was a lot of confidence and perfect control of his instrument in this one, even if the overall experience was a little underwhelming to the original.

Guesses: Ugly Sweater acknowledged the longevity of his career by talking about being influential to artists ranging from Snoop Dogg to Nirvana, while having also worked with Tupac Shakur at one point.

“I’ve been upcycled and recycled more times than I can count,” he said, while showing a praying hands and crying emojis. He also pulled out a 24k gold bar and made a very pointed mention of “skinny jeans.”

On the stage, Ugly Sweater revealed a connection to Nick, saying, “I’ll never forget giving you dating advice,” adding with a huge laugh, “and obviously you didn’t forget, either.”

The last batch of clues for Ugly Sweater focused on his beloved wife, who he says is the exact opposite of him. While his life was unraveling, hers was “all buttoned up.” He was conservative and she was couture.

Perhaps more importantly for their marital success, while he was riding high at the top of the charts, she had no idea who he was. Visual clues throughout the story included an airplane, a stop sign, and a price tag with a tire and fire on it.

“Ugly Sweater spends his time wisely, so much so that he earned himself a lifetime achievement award,” Bumblebee offered for his on-stage clue.

What we learned about Ugly Sweater in the first week was that he was the epitome of style when he was younger, but he lost focus, leading to his world unraveling. He suggested just how serious it was by saying he went from sleeping in penthouses to park benches.

From the bottom though, he finally decided it was time for a change, reclaiming his voice. He did, however, credit those who helped him get back on his feet. Visual clues included a rabbit-in-a-hat, alarm clock, and a blue record on a portable record player.

These were enhanced by his on-stage clue, which came out wrapped in a gift package. It was an orange ugly sweater that read “Featuring” and had four googly-eyes in purple squares on it. “Ugly Sweater’s always in style,” he explained. “Must be why the biggest stars want to work with me.”

By this point, Nick was feeling pretty confident that he knew who this was. Rita Ora was sticking to her guns, and her Smokey Robinson guess, while Jenny took the bar to the Gold album and the crying face emoji to “Crying in the Chapel” to guess Aaron Neville.

But Robin was standing strong that this is Charlie Wilson, based on the voice, which is the artist the internet has been positive about since we first met Ugly Sweater. He tied the gold bar to being on tour with Bruno Mars and honestly, that’s “Uncle Charlie’s” vibe. In other words, it feels like a pretty good guess.

On top of that, we have to say that he has one of the most infectious laughs of anyone we’ve had on this show … and we’ve had some characters on here (both costume and celebrity).

(“Under Pressure,” Queen & David Bowie) Starfish is definitely a high-energy entertainer, clearly as comfortable using her physicality to entertain as her personality. This was a solid enough vocal, but her performance was more just in how she carries herself and embodies the adorable, but restrictive, costume.

Guesses: This week, Starfish revealed that her “two best gal pals” nabbed a job she had wanted, pushing her to work even harder to make it. She did finally get the call to replace someone who’d been fired! On her first day she felt like her every move was being scrutinized.

Visual clues included a hotel bell, a rotary phone, a telescope with pictures of planets stuck to it, and a white stuffed rabbit she knocked off the hotel counter (before ringing said bell).

A magician presented her connection to Jenny, with Starfish adding, “Last time we hung out, I offered you tickets to my show. You can consider this one on the house, too.”

Starfish’s second batch of clues showed how much the jukebox inspired her, as well as introducing her to big rock names like Fleetwood Mac, Eric Clapton, and Green Day.

We saw a “Teacher’s Lounge” sign on a goldfish tank, a whole merch table like we were at a real concert, and the neon glowing word “Live,” which could refer to … well, anything live.

“A true teammate, Starfish has earned awards as part of a talented group,” Optimus Prime said, delivering her on-stage clue.

In Week 1, we got office (or classroom) vibes from Starfish knocking over a glass with pens and a pair of scissors in it. She talked about how she got her start serving steaks to stars like Steve Martin and Whitney Houston. At one point she slathered on “PA’s sunscreen,” which either means Pennsylvania or maybe she was a personal assistant to the stars.

Another shot was of a doll on a beach chair in front of an orange-and-white towel, with orange slices on her outfit. We also saw a four-leaf clover, but Starfish offered an easier solution. She said to trust your yes is coming, “or find a rich sugar mama like me to mooch off of.”

She also touted her successes by saying she went from being told “check, please” to having it all, “and I can afford it.” Her on-stage clue was a clock set to 9 o’clock with “50 billion” written on it. Starfish explained, “I’ve been streamed over 50 billion minutes, and that was just in one year!”

“I love you Kenny, I love you Jenny, my hearts a-throbbin’ for Rita and Robin!” the diminutive star added to the delight of the panel.

With a pretty big new clue tying Starfish to Jenny, Robin wondered if it could possibly be Kate McKinnon, who famously played Jenny on a Masked Singer spoof sketch on Saturday Night Live.

We felt like Rita was going a little wild with her Amy Schumer guess, as she didn’t seem to be able to tie it to any of the clues. Mostly, she was just happy there are so many funny women, which set Ken off to his “favorite” show, The Office.

He tied the telescope to seeing stars — and maybe dancing with one — to find Kate Flannery, who has previously said Lorne Michaels picked her friend over her for SNL. Flannery had growing support from X/Twitter users last week, and they’re only more confident after this latest batch of clues … but they’re also feeling pretty bullish about Jennifer Coolidge … who’s 5’10”. Starfish is tiny!

(“The Show Must Go On,” Queen) Goldfish brought even more passion than usual to this performance, which she dedicated to her “number one supporter.” It was a heartfelt and powerful performance, not just because of the emotion behind it, but because of the strength and power paired flawlessly with vulnerability in her performance.

Guesses: Goldfish broke our hearts this week with the story of her “number one supporter,” who passed away the day before her debut in her “dream role.” She almost didn’t carry on, but instead decided to honor him and “perform for the one seat that wasn’t filled.”

Visual clues included a wizard’s hat an an island map with a question on it. Her panel connection was with Ken: “You’re ridiculous and you have so much heart and I love it so much. You obviously haven’t changed since the last time we worked together.”

Last week, Goldfish talked about having her heartbroken in Hollywood, and how hard it is to move on when you have to see your exes everywhere. Her breakups were so high profile that run-ins with her exes are TikTok fodder.

She said she’d always hoped to be married young like her mom, suggesting that things haven’t worked out that way. Visual clues included a Christmas-themed snow globe (or at least it was a fir tree and a house), with a police siren when she picked it up.

She also swatted off a flying bat at one point, while Bumbleebee told us she famously pours her heart, soul and tears into her work.

In her first clue package, Goldfish said that she was an “overnight splash,” but that put all eyes on her, making her feel like she was living in a fishbowl. Not just eyes, though, but their expectations, she added while holding a literal jar of hearts.

She said she was then faced with a choice, to either play it safe or “dive into deeper, darker, edgier waters.” So she chose the latter, swimming against the current and breaking the mold. That sounds to us like someone who was able to shake off the public’s first perception of her and evolve creatively.

Additional visual clues included a ship’s helm, two lipstick kiss marks (one smaller than the other), a glass slipper, and a jar of hearts. A gold record hit the stage, which had Goldfish saying, “Let the record show that gold is my lucky color.”

Robin took the Ken connection, confirming that he had worked with a one-time Cinderella, Hilary Duff. Jenny, though, wondered if the wizard’s hat might reference Selena Gomez’ Wizards of Waverly Place. Rita, though, picked up that clue of loss and landed right where the internet has been.

The most popular online guess was just about solidified with Goldfish’s story of loss, as Vanessa Hudgens lost her father the day before she took the lead in Fox’s televised Grease: Live, which she dedicated to him. Everything fits for this one.

We know we say this a lot, but this really does feel like a no-brainer. Starfish is adorable and all, but these other two are real singers who have delivered consistently week after week. We suspected that it was her time to go even before the Battle Royale, unless this audience of younger people just isn’t feeling that Ugly Sweater vibe.

As it turns out, that’s exactly how this was going to go, with the audience giving the nod to vivacious energy over seasoned vocal chops, sending Ugly Sweater to the almost-made-it Hall of Nope.

• Robin Thicke: Charlie Wilson
• Jenny McCarthy: Aaron Neville
• Ken Jeong: Al Green
• Rita Ora: Smokey Robinson

Everything was pointing to Robin getting to notch a victory as the clues, the voice, and even that laugh were all pointing to the legendary lead vocalist for The Gap Band, “Uncle Charlie” himself, Charlie Wilson. And with that many signs, it must be true … and it was!

After dropping a few classic bars, he said, “I had a great time here, and the fans are great!”

Rita then had to know what that dating advice was that he gave Nick. “I can’t say this on TV, I don’t want to be bleeped,” but Nick wasn’t so shy. He shared that Uncle Charlie told him, “Rumble, young man, rumble.”

“Young man rumble,” Charlie repeated, before adding, “12 kids? Come on, he did exactly what I thought he would do.” From there, he dropped a bomb on all of us with a rousing rendition of The Gap Band classic.

[video not yet available]

(“Another One Bites the Dust,” Queen) Goldfish shimmied and shook her way through a very light and playful rendition of this classic track. She found her moments, though, to showcase her range and overall vocal prowess. Starfish continued to lean into her showmanship and the blast she’s having with the costume itself, but she actually impressed us with her vocal control and power and range. It was a more straightforward interpretation, but may be her best sound yet.

There’s definitely gonna be something fishy going on around here if Goldfish gets knocked out of this competition by Starfish, even as Starfish really stepped it up in the Battle Royale. Don’t get us wrong, she’s a delight, but this show isn’t called The Masked Delight. So who got the gold star — see what we did there?

Thankfully, they did, sending Starfish home. The bigger challenge was yet to come, though, because did any of them know who this was?

• Robin Thicke: Kate McKinnon
• Jenny McCarthy: Lisa Kudrow
• Ken Jeong: Kate Flannery
• Rita Ora: Amy Schumer

While a lot of those SNL guesses earlier in the season were good, and it was obviously a famous funny lady, we found ourselves leaning more and more toward The Office star. Once you listen to Starfish talk with Kate Flannery in mind, you can hear her distinct comic cadence.

And that’s exactly who it was, giving Ken one of his most successful seasons ever already! When asked how this stage compares to her last major gig, Kate quipped, “There’s more snacks at The Office, and I can’t drink at all when I do this show. Boring!”

After Ken praised her and complimented her on being such a grounded celebrity, Kate shot back that “after The Masked Singer, I am a star!”

The Masked Singer moves back to Group B for Girl Group Night next Wednesday at 8 p.m. ET on Fox.