Spoiler alert! This story contains the celebrity who was unmasked on the October 9 episode of The Masked Singer’s 12th season. Episodes can be streamed the next day with a Hulu subscription if you need to catch up.
The Masked Singer has returned to the 2024 TV schedule for Season 12, just months after crowning Vanessa Hudgens (formerly known as the Goldfish) the winner of the 11th season. Five costumed celebrities took the stage for the season premiere as Group A, and already we’ve sadly begun to say goodbye to them. (More on that lower down.) Which famous faces and voices hide behind the other elaborate set pieces? Here we’ll break down all the clues and give you our best Group A guesses.
This season features a special clue each week to help the panel; for instance, the Week 1 Ambassador was someone who not only has been on The Masked Singer before but also has a close connection to the celeb they introduced. Let’s get into it:
Buffalos
We got quite a surprise when the Buffalo was actually revealed in Week 1 to be a trio of singers. The three beasts moved into the Season 12 quarterfinals as we all fell in love with the singers in their red vests, boots and cowboy hats. They have certainly brought the energy, dancing around as the panelists dissect the clues, and they seem to be having a great time.
- Songs: “Bitter Sweet Symphony” by The Verve (Week 3); “Waiting for a Girl Like You” by Foreigner (Week 2); [I Just] Died in Your Arms” by Cutting Crew (Week 1).
- Special clues: Performed a halftime show in front of one of the world’s biggest audiences; Ambassador Nick Lachey gave them a golden crown with fleur-de-lis embellishments; a miniature tractor with “Mo-Town” written on the front.
- Clues: Week 3: Bell, Lost their real MacGyver but had to keep the herd together, Dead End sign, umbrella. Week 2: Cactus; Playing poker/poker chips; Bottle of poison with crossbones. Week 1: Raised in “poor grasslands”; kneeling football player on bus stop sign; Betty White, Vanna White and a blank third spot; film reel; Walk of Fame; starred in two of the biggest sitcoms of all time.
- Panel's guesses: Boyz II Men (Jenny McCarthy Wahlberg); Bone Thugs-N-Harmony (Ken Jeong); Black Eyed Peas (Rita Ora).
Our Best Guess
The Buffalos are sounding more and more like Boyz II Men to me, and the clues back it up. As Jenny McCarthy Wahlberg pointed out, the bell could be the Liberty Bell, which is in Philadelphia, and that connects to the “Mo-Town” clue. The “Dead End” sign could be for the group’s song “End of the Road.” In 1992 their tour manager Khalil Rountree was murdered, which fits with the clues about losing their “MacGyver.”
Boyz II Men also performed in the Super Bowl halftime show in 1998, and the kneeling man at the bus stop was “Down on Bended Knee”; but you’d think if it is Boyz II Men, Robin Thicke would know it, since he was a special guest at their four-night stint in Las Vegas this summer (and remember the clue about poker?).
Unmasked: Woodpecker
The Masked Singer has seen some wonderful avian costumes over the years, and the Woodpecker, aka actress Marsai Martin, can add itself to that list. The beautiful, red-and-black-feathered friend was unmasked in the Group A finals.
- Songs: “Put Your Records On” by Corinne Bailey Rae (Week 3); “Holding Out for a Hero” by Bonnie Tyler (Week 2); “Flowers” by Miley Cyrus (Week 1).
- Special clues: Pair of glasses that remind her of how she got her start. Ambassador Jenifer Lewis gave her a World Record; Kevin Bacon’s sneaker from Footloose, which Woodpecker said alludes to someone in The Masked Singer family sharing her shoe obsession.
- Clues: Week 3: Comes from a long line of strong women, Regina Hall, hamburger, globe. Week 2: Director’s chair; started Hollywood career young; crates of peppers, carrots and other vegetables; Rubber Duck; small brown briefcase. Week 1: A mogul; friends with Beyoncé; red sports tape with the word “NEXT” on it; framed photo of the word “Family” on a gated entrance; striving to be the youngest billionaire; SAT test sheet.
- Panel's guesses: Quinta Brunson (Ken), Keke Palmer (Rita); Tatiana Ali (Jenny); Liza Koshy (Robin).
Connecting The Clues
The panel was stumped with this one, but Nick Cannon knew. He pointed out that Marsai Martin became the youngest executive producer in Hollywood at 14, which speaks to many of the clues about her career and the world record. The glasses are obviously a nod to her role on black-ish, as was the SAT test, and speaking of the beloved ABC sitcom, she gave us a big clue when talking about her love for shoes and someone sharing her “style-ish” obsession.
The sports tape clue was likely a reference to her boyfriend Rajah Caruth, who is a NASCAR driver, and her Ambassador was Jenifer Lewis — another actress from black-ish.
Unmasked: Ship
This was my favorite costume of The Masked Singer Group A, because who doesn’t love an inanimate object come to life? Unfortunately we said goodbye to The Ship, as Paula Cole was unmasked on October 9.
- Songs: “Because the Night” by Patti Smith (Week 3); “Almost Paradise” by Mike Reno and Ann Wilson (Week 2); “Pompeii” by Bastille (Week 1).
- Special clue: Letter from LeAnn Rimes congratulating her on Best New Artist win in 1998; Ambassador Jewel gave her a sparkling silver cowboy hat, and referenced working together many years prior; she’s worked with Melissa Etheridge.
- Clues: Week 3: Sang backup for an international singer, rowboat, John Wayne. Week 2: Medical boot; prom queen; class president; white cowboy boots; raven on a piano; shipwreck/aquarium. Week 1: Silver chalice; career set sail rapidly; she’s had massive hits; white toy plane with a clock on the front set at 11:36; Wanted poster with $15,000 reward; small old-fashioned TV set with rabbit ears that she moved into the shape of an X.
- Panel's guesses: Sarah McLachlan (Rita), Paula Cole (Jenny), Amy Lee (Robin); Alanis Morissette (Ken).
Connecting The Clues
The clues in the Group A finals further confirmed even before her unmasking that we were right about Paula Cole. She sang backup on Peter Gabriel’s world tour in 1993-94 and won the Grammy for Best New Artist in 1998. We got another cowboy clue in John Wayne following previous weeks’ references to “Where Have All the Cowboys Gone?” and the rowboat was a nod to Dawson’s Creek, which she provided the theme song for.
Our reasoning in previous weeks stemmed from Paul Cole being prom queen and president of her senior class in high school. She broke her foot, which is when she turned her focus to music. The title of her sixth studio album is Raven, and Cole dueted with Melissa Etheridge on VH1. As was pointed out by Jenny McCarthy Wahlbert, Paula Cole and Jewel were both main-stage performers for the inaugural year of Lilith Fair.
Unmasked: Showbird
We bid farewell to the Showbird, as Yvette Nicole Brown was unmasked on the October 2 episode. Here’s how her run on the show played out:
- Songs: “Let’s Hear It for the Boy” by Deniece Williams (Week 2); "Just Fine" by Mary J. Blige (Week 1)
- Special clues: Ambassador Joel McHale gave her popcorn; music box that represented being part of a hip-hop empire in 1994.
- Clues: Week 2: Large rings; a windmill; purple cupcake; and a shout-out to her man. Week 1: Three microphones; was a tomboy growing up and self-described nerd; Advanced Singing 401 textbook; golden gavel; appeared in some of the biggest blockbusters of all time.
- Panel's guesses: Yvette Nicole Brown (Ken and Robin); Taraji P. Henson (Jenny and Rita); Sheila E. (Rita).
Connecting The Clues
Ken nailed it with his guess, and I was confident we’d made the right pick in Week 1 with Yvette Nicole Brown, largely because of the cadence of her voice, but the clues definitely backed it up. Everything she said about finding love referenced her fiancé, actor Anthony Davis, especially the fact that they reconnected after knowing each other for years. In 1994, she was part of the East Coast Family group that included Boyz II Men. The cupcake might have been a nod to her appearance on Cupcake Wars. There were also the Community-based clues in Joel McHale and a textbook.
The gavel possibly referenced her role as Judge Harper on A Black Lady Sketch Show, and she was in Avengers: Endgame — one of the biggest blockbusters of all time. The actress has described herself as a “nerd,” and is a well-known superfan of properties like Star Wars and The Walking Dead. Lego was mentioned amongst the clues, and Yvette Nicole Brown has voiced roles on several Lego movies for Marvel, DC and Star Wars.
First Eliminated Celebrity
- The Leaf Sheep — which yes, is apparently a real thing — was unmasked in the season premiere to reveal it was none other than Denver Broncos legend John Elway. The two-time Super Bowl champ (who the panelists thought might be Tom Brady) delivered a rousing performance Tim McGraw's "I Like It, I Love It," though perhaps one that didn't exactly remained on key.
Group A is going strong on The Masked Singer Season 12, and I can't wait to hear what else they bring in the coming weeks. New episodes air at 8 p.m. ET Wednesdays on Fox.
