Fox’s reality singing competition, The Masked Singer, is currently one of the highest-rated shows on television, and through its three seasons, the show has been able to maintain consistently high ratings. Those who have been following the series would know that the competition involves celebrities dressed in head-to-toe costumes performing against each other.
During each episode, all the celebrity contestants present their over-the-top musical performance and the identity of the contestants exit during the episode reveals during the big reveal. Season 4 of The Masked Singer premiered on September 23, 2020. In this video, we share some interesting facts about The Masked Singer that you didn’t know! For instance, not many people know who is the brain behind the magical costumes that the contestants wear on the show, or that the contestants have to sign stringent contracts before they get to be on the show. In this video, we’ll tell you all about these secrets and more.
The Masked Singer Is Based on the South Korean show King of Masked Singer
The Masked Singer premiered on Fox on January 2, 2019, and since then, the show has become quite popular in the United States. However, if you think the concept of the show originated in the United States, you are wrong. The show is based on a South Korean reality show called King of Masked Singer, which premiered in South Korea in 2015. In 2017, The Masked Singer’s executive producer Craig Plestis saw an episode of the South Korean version of the show while dining in a Thai restaurant in Los Angeles, and decided to adapt it for the American audience. In the South Korean version, contestants only wear masks. However, in the American version, contestants appear in head-to-toe costumes.
The Current Masked Singer Team Has Many Dancing With the Stars Alumnus
One of the reasons behind the show’s popularity could be that there are a lot of talented and experienced people spearheading the show. In fact, some of the team members of The Masked Singer are actually Dancing With the Stars alumnus. One of the executive producers of The Masked Singers is Izzie Patrick Ibara, who used to an executive producer for Dancing With the Stars. Similarly, Alex Rudzinski who was one of the directors on Dancing With the Stars is also a part of the singing competition series.
All Episodes of Season Three Were Pre-Recorded in Front of a Live Studio Audience
If you have seen any episode of The Masked Singer, you will know that every episode looks like it is recording live — that’s because of the constant screaming of the audience members. In truth, each episode is recording again in front of a live audience and then, broadcast later. All episodes of season three records in this manner. However, to prevent the identities of contestants from revealing, code names and disguises use and all contestants make to sign a non-disclosure agreement.
Most of the Competitors Are Not Trained Singers
Most of the competitors who appear on the reality singing competition series are neither trained singers nor performers. Therefore, every competitor gets a proper team they work with to hone their craft. Nick Cannon, the host of the show, told People magazine that each contestant works alongside a voice coach, choreographer and a proper production team who help prepare the contestant for the competition.
Contestants Are Under Contractual Obligation to Wear a Mask and Hoodie While on Sets
Since anonymity is a very big part of this singing competition/reality series, contestants are under contractual obligation to wear masks even when they are not performing to keep their identity hidden from the production staff. Similarly, the contestants required to rehearse at different locations and arrive on sets at different times. In an interview with E! News, Margaret Cho, the Poodle in the first season, reveals that the contestants want to appear on set for rehearsals in ski masks and big hoodies to help them keep their identity hidden. And if that’s not enough, contestants’ entourages require to wear masks as social media makes it to easier for people to identify singers simply by following their posse.
If you think all of this is too extreme, wait till we tell you about the costumes that the contestants have to wear. While the costumes that the contestants get to wear are beautiful and extremely creative, performing in them is not easy at all. Meanwhile, if you find our videos entertaining, do not forget to like and subscribe to our channel and press the bell icon to stay updated about all our latest updates.
And Audience Members Are Also Made to Sign Special Contracts
You must be thinking that The Masked Singer team is a little too extreme when it comes to protecting the identity of contestants. However, when a show’s premise builts on concealing identities, it makes sense to be extra careful. It is, therefore, not very surprising that the show’s creators also forbid the show’s audience from using electronics during the pre-recordings. More importantly, all audience members require to sign contracts that bind them to secrecy.
The Show Sees Some Very Talented People
Though most of the contestants who appear on the show are not trained singers, it does not mean they lack in talent. Fox reported that during one of the seasons, all the contestants who participated in the series together represented 16 Emmy Nominations, 16 multi-platinum albums and 65 Grammy nominations. Four of the contestants had a star to their credit on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and four others had won Super Bowl titles. So, how does the casting take place? The Masked Singer’s producers reach out to agents of celebrities for casting. In most cases, producers prefer to cast lesser-known celebrities as the audience finds it hard to guess them. More importantly, the casting team tries to create a balance between age, gender and backgrounds while casting for the show.
Nick Cannon Thinks Ken Jeong Makes the Worst Guesses
The newest season of The Masked Singer will once again feature Ken Jeong, Jenny McCarthy, Robin Thicke and Nicole Scherzinger on the judges’ panel. Nick Cannon once weighed on which judge makes the worst guesses on the show. According to the show’s host, though Ken Jeong is a doctor and he is super smart as well, he is very bad at guessing the contestants. According to Cannon, Ken does not think much and just throws names off the top of his mind. On the other hand, Cannon thinks Robin Thicke is the judge who takes the show most seriously and tries his best to figure out the celebrity behind the costume.
During Pre-Recordings, the Big Reveal Does Not Happen Right Away
When a masked singer loses, their identity is revealed to the audience members. To the audiences sitting at home, the identity unveiling happens immediately. However, Entertainment Weekly reports that after a contestant loses, they receive time to go backstage, do hair and makeup and basically make themselves camera-ready for the big unveiling.
But Other Contestants Are Not Allowed to See the Unmasking of Any Eliminated Contestants
And while the studio audiences get to see the eliminated contestant right away (or maybe after a small break), the other contestants have to wait like everyone else for the episode to air to know who is hiding behind each costume. In her interview to E! News, Margaret Cho reveals that the other contestants on the show are not allowed to see who got eliminated or their unmasking.
Reynolds Made a Guest Appearance of the South Korean Version of the Show
Ryan Reynolds is a global star and has fans around the world. Thus, in 2018, while he was promoting his upcoming film Deadpool 2 in South Korea, Ryan got an invitation to appear on the South Korean version of the show and being the spontaneous, fun-loving person he is, he agreed. For his appearance, he chose to grace the stage in a unicorn mask and cape and sang ‘Tomorrow’ from the musical ‘Annie’. You can very well imagine the audience’s reaction when he finally took off the mask and revealed his identity.
Marina Toybina Is the Mind Behind Those Crazy Costumes
The Masked Singer has featured some insane looks for contestants. The person responsible for these looks is Marina Toybina. The four-time Emmy winner keeps coming up with great looks one after another. However, the process is not easy. Creating each costume takes anything between three to four weeks. Further, many costumes require painting and airbrushing, which are even more elaborate processes. Marina also has to keep in mind the various needs of the contestants while designing the costumes. For instance, contestants should be able to go and pee in their elaborate attires. Every season, Marina creates 20 new costumes and then all the contestants choose a look that they most relate to.
Marina Toybina Looks to Films for Inspiration
When one is handling the responsibility of creating twenty absolutely unique costumes for each season, one must look for inspiration in everything possible. For Marina, inspiration often comes from movies. For instance, according to Marina, the inspiration for the rabbit costume that Joey Fatone wore in season 1 came from Donnie Darko and Edward Scissorhands. Similarly, Marina also confessed that her Lion and Unicorn costumes were inspired by the film The Chronicles of Narnia. Each piece Marina Toybina creates for the show is truly a work of art!
Performing in Some of the Costumes Is Quite Difficult
As explained before, while some costumes take only a few days to put together, the work on some of the other costumes goes on for months. Similarly, while some costumes are quite easy to wear, wearing others is a headache. For instance, the Raven costume is one of the most difficult costumes to wear as its wings are 9-feet-wide and are also super heavy. Thus, to be able to perform in the Raven attire isn’t easy. Yet another problem that contestants face with their elaborate getups is that they find it quite difficult to see the audience in their costumes, which makes performing difficult.
So, do you like The Masked Singer? Are you planning on rigorously following the fourth season? If so, do you have any guesses regarding the current contestant line-up? Let us know in the comments section below! Also, before you move to the next Facts Verse video, do not forget to like and subscribe to our channel and press the bell icon to stay updated about all our latest videos.
