The Masked Singerhas featured some of the most iconic singers, including season 12’s most recent winners Boyz II Men (Buffalos) and runner-up Mario (Wasp), butI wish the show would have a whole season of non-professional singers.The Masked Singerpremiered in January 2019, with host Nick Cannon and panelists Robin Thicke, Jenny McCarthy-Wahlberg, Ken Jeong, and Nicole Scherzinger. During season 11, Rita Ora took Nicole’s place on the panel while the latter star was busy with other commitments.
The Masked Singerhas had twelve winners so far–T-Pain (Monster), Wayne Brady (Fox), Kandi Burruss (Night Angel), LeAnn Rimes (Sun), Nick Lachey (Piglet), Jewel (Queen of Hearts), Teyana Taylor (Firefly), Amber Riley (Harp), Bishop Briggs (Medusa), Ne-Yo (Cow), Vanessa Hudgens (Goldfish), and Boyz II Men (Buffalos)–and all of them are professional singers in some capacity.However, the show has featured many fantastic singers who aren’t from the music industry, and I think that their reveals were even more thrilling. Here’s whyThe Masked Singershould have a whole season in which all of the contestants are non-professional singers.
The Masked Singer Has Featured Some Phenomenal Non-Professional Singers
Many Of Them Were Strong Contenders To Win The Golden Mask Trophy
Although some ofThe Masked Singercontestants who aren’t professional singers didn’t have the best voices and were eliminated early,there have been many phenomenal competitors who don’t sing for a living. InThe Masked Singerseason 12, NFL playerKobie Turner made it to the quarterfinals as Goo. He had the panelists stumped until his last episode when he revealed that he wasn’t a professional singer, and Jenny finally guessed him.
Kobie blew away the audience week after week with his performances, and the fact that he’s a football player and not a professional singer made his reveal even more thrilling. He even released his powerful version of “House of the Rising Sun” by The Animals on Spotify after hisMasked Singerrun ended.
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Through the years,many other athletes have had impressive runs onThe Masked Singer, including Terry Bradshaw (Deer, season1); Victor Oladipo (Thingamajig, season 2); Barry Zito (Rhino, season 3); Mark Sanchez (Baby Alien, season 4); Jordan Mailata (Thingamabob, season 7); Keenan Allen (Gargoyle, season 9); Billie Jean King (Royal Hen, season 10); DeMarcus Ware (season 11, Koala); andBronson Arroyo (Sherlock Hound, season 12). Most people didn’t realize how beautiful these athletes' singing voices were, so it was shocking when they were unmasked.
Besides athletes,there have been many other spectacularMasked Singercontestants who are known for other talents besides singing. They include actress Rumer Willis (Lion, season 1); magicians and comedians Penn & Teller (Hydra, season 7); model Christie Brinkley (Lemur, season 7); actor Jorge Garcia (Cyclops, season 7), and celebrity chef Duff Goldman (McTerrier, season 7).
In addition, comedian Nikki Glaser (Snowstorm, season 8), late television host Jerry Springer (Beetle, season 8); comedian Howie Mandel (Rock Lobster, season 9); reality TV star Colton Underwood (Lovebird, season 11); TV host Billy Bush (Sir Lion, season 11); restaurateur Joe Bastianich (Spaghetti & Meatballs, season 11);actress and activist Laverne Cox (Chess Piece, season 12), and actor and comedian Andy Richter (Dust Bunny, season 12)all surprised the panelists and the audience with their impressive singing abilities.
There have been many other non-professional singers who’ve competed onThe Masked Singerthrough the years, including Rob Gronkowski (White Tiger, season 3), but some of them, like Gronk, had bigger personalities than voices.I’m not advocating for a season of celebrities who like to sing but aren’t particularly good at it, but rather a season of non-professional singers who compete at the highest level.
The Masked Singer Is More Exciting When The Contestants Are Harder To Guess
Some Voices Are Instantly Recognizable
When Boyz II Men debuted as Buffalos duringThe Masked Singerseason 12 premiere, fans instantly recognized their voices. They’ve been such a huge part of the music industry for so long that they were easy to guess. Although I still found it heartwarming to finally see their faces when they were unmasked during the finale, I also felt likeThe Masked Singerseason 12 game was too easy. I felt the same about several other extraordinary, yet obvious, singers who competed in season 12, including Mario,AJ Michalka (Strawberry Shortcake), Natalie Imbruglia (Bluebell), and Paula Cole (Ship).
While I love all of these singers, and I enjoyed every single one of their performances immensely, I missed playingThe Masked Singergame, which can become a bit anticlimactic when the singers are obvious. Part of the fun is gathering clues every week to try to figure out who the singers are, butrecognizing their voices from their first notes takes the fun out of it. This happens season after season.
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If there were aMasked Singerseasonwith only non-professional singers, it would be much harder to identify their voices because viewers wouldn’t have been listening to their music for years before they appeared on the show.Instead, the clues would become much more important, which would make the game much more challenging.
The Masked Singer Would Be More Unpredictable If Professional Singers Weren’t Allowed To Compete
The Winners Emerge Quite Early When They Dominate The Competition
While it was very exciting to see Boyz II Men and Mario unmasked duringThe Masked Singerseason 12 finale because they’re so iconic,it was also predictable. By the finale, most fans, including me, had already figured out who they were, and we were just enjoying watching them perform every week.
The clues had become inconsequential, and were there more to add to the list of reasons why we knew who they were than to help us figure them out because we already knew who they were. In addition,it seemed a foregone conclusion that they were the frontrunners to win because they dominated the competition every week. And, of course they should’ve won: they’re Boyz II Men!
However, with Kobie and Bronson, it was much less obvious if they’d win because they weren’t as recognizable. The panelists didn’t guess either of them until their final episodes, (Jenny guessed Kobie and Robin guessed Bronson), which made it a lot of fun to guess who they were, especially since they were so talented that the panelists kept guessing professional singers for their identities. If professional singers were excluded from a season,celebrities who don’t sing for a living would have a chance to win.This would make for a very exhilaratingMasked Singerseason, and it would breathe new life into the show.
It’s Inspiring To See Celebrities Come Out Of Their Comfort Zones During The Masked Singer
They Reveal Hidden Talents
I find it very inspiring to watch celebrities come out of their comfort zones duringThe Masked Singer, and to see them reveal their hidden talents. Many of them have said that the anonymity that they experience from being hidden under a mask is very freeing. It makes the reveals even more special when the celebrity isn’t a singer because of their pride about having performed on the show. Many celebrities are defined by their professions, andThe Masked Singergives them the opportunity to shine in other areas.
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When Kobie was unmasked, it was inspiring to see him beaming with pride because he’d showcased another one of his talents. He said that he wanted to show that there was so much more to athletes than just playing sports. Kobie succeeded in doing that, along with manyother multi-talented celebrities who’ve graced theMasked Singerstageover the years.
I think thatThe Masked Singershould have a whole season without professional singers. It would make the guessing game more challenging, and it would highlight the vocal abilities of celebrities that people didn’t know could sing. However, I’d like to see mostly contestants with strong voices, rather than big personalities who are there just for the entertainment or shock value.The Masked Singeris my favorite show, andI think that a season of non-professional singers could be a huge success.
The Masked Singerseason 13 premieres on Wednesday, June 30, 2025, at 8 p.m. EST on FOX.
The Masked Singer
Cast
The Masked Singer is a reality singing competition where celebrities perform in elaborate costumes concealing their identities, with panelists and viewers trying to guess who is behind the mask based on clues provided throughout the show.
