The Masked Singer has concluded its round of eliminations for the Group B celebrities, and will now go through the same process for everyone in Group C. In the meantime, the remaining contestants from Group A and B can relax until those Final 9 showdowns, and the lull gives fans (including us!) plenty of time to continue speculating about the identities of each of the titular masked singers.
This includes The Banana, who has had the judges going back and forth over who the fruitful performer could be. It's certainly a bigger mystery than the identities of the Frog or White Tiger, though I personally don't think this is as dense as the Kangaroo situation. Here's a recap of the clues we've seen so far for The Banana, followed by who we ultimately think is hiding out under that potassium-rich mask.
The Clues
The first clue package for the Banana seemed like it was giving away way too much by very obviously teasing a certain celebrity. We saw a cowboy hat, a blowfish, and the Banana even said the word "hoot." It doesn't take a genius to figure out who The Masked Singer wanted people to guess, and judge Robin Thicke took the bait. We also saw a "blue collar," which seemed to indicate whoever was underneath the mask was associated with the working class in some way.
The blue collar clue became more meaningful in the second clue package, when Banana used the very specific catchphrase "Git R Done." We also saw a bunch of TV show pitches that Banana could be a part of (to repair his image), which was inferred by the judges to possibly mean this celebrity has been on television. The Masked Singer contestant closed by saying he'd be thrilled to be "rockin out as his authentic self," which could be another musical nod.
A huge clue was revealed in the Banana's third clue package, in which it was revealed the contestant likes to go-cart. So much so that he built a racetrack the backyard of the mystery guests that the judges speculated were his children. Ultimately the video showed that Banana was a role model in some way, even though the previous videos hinted at the opposite being the case.
In terms of singing ability, the Banana is someone who can definitely hold a note, but does have some overarching struggles. A notable example would be when he flubbed the lyrics to Billy Ray Cyrus' "Achy Breaky Heart," which is typically the kind of behavior an audience will vote someone off for. Yet, the Banana is still in this competition.
Popular Guesses For The Masked Singer's Banana
Without further ado, let's get down to it and go over some of the Internet's most popular guesses being floated concerning the Banana's identity.
Bret Michaels
Outside of being the adored lead singer of Poison, Bret Michaels made a name for himself elsewhere by appearing on all different types of television shows. Perhaps the most notable was Rock of Love, in which Michaels searched for romance in a household of multiple women for multiple seasons. He's also got a pretty solid singing voice, so it's not hard to see why The Masked Singer fandom is eyeing him as the Banana.
Bill Engvall
One of the acclaimed comedians synonymous with The Blue Collar Comedy tour, Bill Engvall has made a career in comedy bolstered by his trademark "Here's your sign" bit. He's also known for crafting comedic songs to go along with the non-melodic jokes, which would explain how he's able to be up on stage as the Banana singing notes as opposed to telling jokes. Engvall also starred in his own television series The Bill Engvall Show, so those television clues could be a reference to that. (Larry the Cable Guy is also a popular choice, but using "Get R Done" seemed a little too on the nose.)
Johnny Knoxville first gained fame as a star on MTV's Jackass, and has more or less made a career of it, acting in movies that often involve some stunt-based work. Knoxville doesn't have a notable track record of being a talented singer, to be sure, though he does have a famous country singer cousin by the name of Roger Alan Wayne. Perhaps if his cousin got some musical ability, this singing talent runs in the family?
Who We Think It Is
It was fun to entertain other options for a short while, but it's getting hard to realistically guess any other option other than Bret Michaels. Despite The Masked Singer's best efforts to put everyone on the trail of Darius Rucker, it feels remarkably obvious at this point that the Poison frontman is posing as the Banana on The Masked Singer, and we got the receipts.
To start with what may be the most obvious giveaway to anyone familiar with the subject: the go-karts. When a Masked Singer clue is specific enough to mention someone building a go-kart track in their backyard, it drastically reduces the numbers on who that contestant could be. It just so happens that Bret Michaels has posted videos of him driving around a go-kart track with one of his daughters, which makes it kind of hard to refute he's the person posing as the Banana. Oh, and the dates on that alarm clock clue all correspond to the release dates of his albums he's put out as a solo artist. No coincidences here, people.
To go back to what was arguably the biggest Darius Rucker fake-out clue – the blowfish – a lot of The Masked Singer fans (and judges) didn't consider that blowfish are poisonous, which is, of course, a subtle nod to Bret Michael's band Poison. He also has his own line of pet goods, which may explain the random pet toys on the ground of the first clue package.
So then, what's the deal with all the Blue Collar Comedy and Sons Of Anarchy references? Bret Michaels is well-known for his love of motorcycles. And, well, sometimes The Masked Singer likes to throw a few false clues in the mix in an attempt to put Internet sleuths off the trail. It hasn't worked so much in this case though, as The Masked Singer viewers at large are more or less convinced that Bret Michaels is the Banana. Perhaps if Season 4 gets the greenlight, the producers will actually try to keep the clues harder on a weekly basis.
The Masked Singer airs on Fox on Wednesdays at 8:00 p.m. ET. Continue to stick with CinemaBlend for updates on the show and for the latest major news in television and movies.
