SPOILER ALERT: Details follow for Season 12, Episode 12 of “The Masked Singer,” “Finale: Champion Is Crowned,” which aired Wednesday, December 18 on Fox.
Although we’ve come to the end of the road, we can’t let go. On this one sweet day, Motownphilly’s back again: Boyz II Men (as the Buffalo) won Season 12 of Fox’s “The Masked Singer.” It’s so hard to say goodbye to yesterday, but this win makes Boyz II Men the first-ever group to win the masked trophy.
Boyz II Men beat out Mario, as the Wasp, who was this season’s runner-up. Among the panelists, it was unanimous: everyone agreed that the Buffalos were Boyz II Men. Meanwhile, for Mario as Wasp, both Rita Ora and Robin Thicke got it right. Jenny McCarthy-Wahlberg guessed Jason Derulo. Ken Jeong said it was Usher.
Boyz II Men’s Wanyá Morris told Variety that the group has been asked numerous times to compete on “The Masked Singer,” but scheduling issues made it difficult to do until now.
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“And then one time I got COVID,” he added. “But it was something that we realized they weren’t going to stop asking us. So we decided to do it.”
Morris said at first, the group was disguising its voices with a plan to get voted off quickly “so that we can spend our two weeks off without having to work. But when we got there, we saw that there was great singers there, and the energy level was high. It seemed to be a very fun atmosphere. And we were like, let’s stick around a little bit longer. So therefore we did.”
It wasn’t easy, however, as Nathan Morris noted, the costumes made it hard: “They’re heavy, they’re hot, it’s hard to breathe. You can’t see anything but what’s literally directly in front of you. And it has to be far away. So it was a struggle, and the hardest part for us, because it was a singing show, was the fact that the microphone is sitting on the head of the mascot suit. But it’s still another two feet away from your mic. So trying to get your voice there and control the inflections and all was very difficult. It was a learning curve.”
Boyz II Men sang “Somebody That I Used to Know,” by Gotye, and “Too Good At Goodbyes,” by Sam Smith, as their final numbers. The group had previously performed “(I Just) Died In Your Arms,” by Cutting Crew; “Waiting For a Girl Like You,” by Foreigner; “Bittersweet Symphony,” by The Verve; “You’re Still the One,” by Shania Twain; and “Africa,” by Toto.
The group said they’re considering adding some of these songs to their performance repertoire. “All the songs presented our ability to show people that we’re more than just R&B singers, which is what we’ve always felt like,” Shawn Stockman said. “This allowed us to really stretch out in a way where we wouldn’t be ostracized or looked at as uncool or corny. We listen to R&B, we listen to pop, we listen to rock, we listen to all kinds of music in our private time. And this was probably the only time that we were allowed to express that in our whole entire careers.”
The Finals opened with Season 5 winner Nick Lachey performing “It’s The Most Wonderful Time of the Year,” by Andy Williams.
Boyz II Men as Buffalo and Mario as Wasp join AJ Michalka as Strawberry Shortcake; Kobie Turner as Goo, Jana Kramer as Royal Knight, Bronson Arroyo as Sherlock Hound, Drake Bell as Ice King, Bethany Hamilton as Macaron, Natalie Imbruglia as Bluebell, Laverne Cox as Chess Piece, Andy Richter as Dusty Bunny, Paula Cole as Ship, Marsai Martin as Woodpecker, Yvette Nicole Brown as Showbird and John Elway as Leaf Sheep as the celebrities unmasked on “The Masked Singer” Season 12.
Back for Season 12 were host Nick Cannon, alongside panelists Jenny McCarthy Wahlberg, Ken Jeong and Robin Thicke, while Ora also returned to the desk for the second consecutive season to fill in for Nicole Scherzinger.
“The Masked Singer” Season 12 themed episodes included tributes to Mattel’s Barbie as it hits its 65th anniversary, and the film “Footloose” as it marks its 40th anniversary. Miley Cyrus was honored with an episode devoted to her music catalog, while also new was a “Who Are You Fest,” featuring music from “memorable festival lineups,” as well as a “Sports Night” and a “60’s Night.” Tentpole themes that were back include “Soundtrack of My Life” and “Thanksgiving Night.”
New this season, clues were “strategically embedded in costumes, in song choices and on-stage moments.” And the fifteen celebrity contestants were endorsed by a “celebrity Masked Ambassador,” made up of previous participants including Dick Van Dyke (Season 9’s Gnome), Jewel (Season 6 winner as the Queen of Hearts), Ne-yo (Season 10 winner as the Cow) and DeMarcus Ware (Season 11’s Koala). And the “Ding Dong Keep It On” bell returned this year, but only one singer across the three group finals could be saved.
Season 12 featured 15 contestants performing in new costumes including “Ship,” “Leaf Sheep,” “Woodpecker,” “Chess Piece,” “Bluebell,” “Buffalo,” “Showbird,” “Dust Bunny,” “Goo,” “Strawberry Shortcake,” “Wasp,” “Sherlock Hound,” “Royal Knight,” “Ice King” and “Macaron.”
Here were performances on Wednesday’s Episode 12, “Finale: Champion Is Crowned”:
Buffalo, “The Masked Singer” (Michael Becker/Fox)
WINNER: Buffalo
Song: “Somebody That I Used to Know,” by Gotye; “Too Good At Goodbyes,” by Sam Smith
Panel guesses: Boyz II Men, Bell Biv DeVoe, Tony! Toni! Toné!
How freeing was it to be Buffalo?: “So freeing. I’m crying right now. And I don’t even know why. This has made me feel with these guys, we can do anything.”
Buffalo voiceover: “Honestly, we’re feeling kind of emotional making it here to the finale. Yeah, it’s been an opportunity to rediscover ourselves and our bond in a really cool way. I feel we had to adapt a lot in our career. But adaptability has been the name of the game since jump. We had to fight our way out of the hood. We had to overcome the passing of one of the most important people in our lives. And we’ve even had to change our entire sound when we lost a member. This has been for our fans, for our kids, for everyone who stuck with us. And we see you Nick Lachey, thank you so much for vouching for us as our ambassador. We hope to follow in your winning footsteps tonight. We’re those somebodies you used to know, still know and will always know. Maybe for another three decades to come.”
Previous songs: “(I Just) Died In Your Arms,” by Cutting Crew; “Waiting For a Girl Like You,” by Foreigner; “Bittersweet Symphony,” by The Verve; “You’re Still the One,” by Shania Twain; “Africa,” by Toto
Previous panel guesses: B2K, Earth Wind and Fire, 98 Degrees, Bell Biv DeVoe, 112, Boyz II Men, Big Time Rush, Bone Thugs N Harmony, Black Eyed Peas, Temptations, Tony! Toni! Toné!, Blackstreet, Color Me Badd, After 7
Wasp, “The Masked Singer” (Michael Becker/Fox)
Wasp
Song: “When I Was Your Man,” by Bruno Mars; “I’m Your Baby Tonight,” by Whitney Houston
Panel guesses: Daveed Diggs, Usher, Bruno Mars, Frank Ocean, Jason Derulo, Taye Diggs, Miguel, Mario, Anthony Ramos
What would you say to Young Wasp: “Your wings are like your intuition. Trust them. Believe in yourself.”
Wasp voiceover: “Making it to the finale means more to me than I can explain. This experience has felt like it was made for me. Like I’m finally getting the recognition I’ve been craving. For a long time in this industry, I felt underrated. I started building my empire at a young age. I dominated the Billboard charts and collaborated with the best in the business. Including a bunch of Masked Singer alums. Lil Wayne, Vanessa Hudgens, and of course my ambassador Ne-Yo, who I’ve been hitting up for advice this whole time. But I still feel like the industry hasn’t known how vast my talent is. I feel like I’m constantly being overlooked at times, and like people still see me as that cute little kid with that song. They don’t know the depths of my talent. Being here, I felt the opposite. I felt appreciated, validated, celebrated and all anonymously. Which somehow makes it feel more real. That’s something I will take with me tonight. As the Wasp, I’ve gotten to expose all that I’m in. The power, my vulnerability. I’m giving you everything, And the fact that y’all have noticed makes me feel like I can soar. I feel my mom here with me tonight in spirit and she’s given me wings for these last two performances. I hope she’s proud. And if I can take home that trophy, that would mean the world that I can show her baby can be the winner tonight.
Previous songs: “Rock Your Body,” by Justin Timberlake; “Skyscraper,” by Demi Lovato; “Ain’t No Way,” by Aretha Franklin; “Standing Next to You,” by Jungkook; “Beautiful Things,” by Benson Boone
Previous panel guesses: Taye Diggs, Bruno Mars, Jason Derulo, Miguel, Frank Ocean, Daveed Diggs, Mario, Craig David, Eric Benét, Usher, Maxwell, Anthony Ramos
Last season’s performers included Vanessa Hudgens, who won the Season 11 crown as Goldfish, beating out Scott Porter, who had performed as Gumball. Other performers included Thelma Houston (Clock), Chrissy Metz (Poodle Moth), Corey Feldman (Seal) and Clay Aiken/Ruben Studdard (Beets), Jenifer Lewis (Miss Cleocatra), Kate Flannery (Starfish), Charlie Wilson (Ugly Sweater), DeMarcus Ware (Koala), Colton Underwood (Love Bird), Sisqó (Lizard), Billy Bush (Sir Lion), Joe Bastianich (Spaghetti & Meatballs), Savannah Chrisley (Afghan Hound) and Kevin Hart (Book).
“The Masked Singer” comes from Fox Alternative Entertainment. Rosie Seitchik, Craig Plestis and Cannon are executive producers, while Seitchik serves as showrunner. The series is based on the South Korean format created by Mun Hwa Broadcasting Corp.