Another week, another grand Masked Singer reveal
The Masked Singer season 9, episode 3, unmasked the Polar Bear, who performed “Rapture” by Blondie
Come one, come all, for another Masked Singer unmasking. Not the actual unmasking, which happened on television on Wednesday night, but the part where The A.V. Club just tells you who got unmasked. It’s all of the satisfying B-list celebrity recognition with none of the having to actually watch The Masked Singer.
Last week, both Howie Mandel and Debbie Gibson were unmasked as Rock Lobster and Night Owl, respectively. The third episode featured only one grand reveal, that of the Polar Bear. This contestant was fortunate enough to have Long Island Medium Theresa Caputo deliver their clue (“Acceptance speech at the Rock ‘n Roll Hall of Fame”), and they were, it must be said, a perfect choice for “New York Night.”
As Polar Bear pointed out, “[This] city of dreams where I come from is a source of everything that made me, me. My neighborhood got a bad rap. It’s the kind of place that most people wouldn’t dream of getting down with.” In voiceover, the contestant revealed an “interest in electronics as a kid” led to “another knock-out idea that helped me turn the tables on the entire music industry. This bad boy invented a sound no one was making. My legendary status helped put my broken borough on the map.”
Yes, the Polar Bear was none other than… Grandmaster Flash, correctly guessed by Nicole Scherzinger (guesses from other judges included Diddy, LL Cool J, and Flava Flav). The hip hop pioneer acknowledged to Variety later that he “sung horribly,” but his choice of track—“Rapture” by Blondie—was a personal one. “That song was actually written for me,” he told Variety. “I remember Fab Five Freddy bringing [Blondie’s Debbie Harry] to one of my shows. This is way back in the day before I became famous. And she wrote this song of what she saw when I was on the turntables at one of my amateur shows.”
Ninth season episodes typically feature two reveals, but this week reigning champion Medusa was saved from the chopping block by the gorgeously titled deus ex machina “Ding Dong Keep It On” bell. The judges sent Medusa on to a face-off episode while competitor California Roll heads to the quarter-finals. See you next week!