For some viewers of “The Masked Singer,” one of last night’s performances was unbearable. The judges of the show were shocked when a singer in a bear costume was revealed to be former Alaska governor and vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin.
“The Masked Singer” is a reality competition show involving mystery celebrity guests singing in costume before a live audience and panel of judges, who try to guess who the singers are. The worst performers are eliminated.
Palin was unmasked and eliminated from the show Wednesday night after rapping “Baby Got Back” by Sir Mix-a-Lot while dressed as a bright pink and blue bear. The studio audience and judges thought her performance was the worst of the night, although judge Nicole Scherzinger called it “amazing” and judge Jenny McCarthy said she “loved it.”
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“After years of hearing all the phony baloney, I’m sick of everyone not knowing who I really am,” Palin said ahead of her performance. “This mama bear is coming out of hibernation. Maybe I’ve been a little polarizing, but just like a bear, it’s all been to protect my cubs. Under this mask, I found the courage to come out of my cage, stop hiding and face the world head-on.”
None of the show’s judges were able to guess that Palin was the performer, but judge Robin Thicke guessed it was comedian Tina Fey, who famously played Palin on “Saturday Night Live.” Ken Jeong initially guessed Tonya Harding, but switched his guess to Jodie Sweetin. McCarthy also guessed a “Full House” star, picking Candace Cameron-Bure and Scherzinger went with Christina Applegate as her guess.
“To not be able to see really much of anything out of this [cosume], it’s really nice,” Palin said on stage. “It takes the sharp edges off the world. Everything looks a little bit softer, sweeter. I needed this. I loved this.”
After being unmasked, Palin explained why she chose to dress as a bear. “The bear is part of my nickname growing up and the whole ‘Mama Bear’ thing, and they’re in Alaska,” she said. “Bear was easy.”
The judges and live audience were equally stunned when host Nick Cannon made the big reveal. “Stunned beyond belief, you kicked butt,” McCarthy said. “This might be the most shocked I have ever been on this show,” Cannon said.
“This is the weirdest thing I’ve ever done, that’s for sure,” Palin said. “But it’s all about fun, it’s unity. This is something that our country needs right now too.”
The reveal came just minutes before Fox cut to President Trump’s address to the nation on the coronavirus. Twitter users were quick to joke about the timing of the two moments.
