(Warning: This post contains spoilers for Season 8 of “The Masked Singer”)
Vegas Night on “The Masked Singer” proved to be quite the spectacle as Panther and Pie-Rat competed to take down the reigning Queen Harp. Despite their best efforts, they were unable to remove him from the throne.
Pie-Rat is eliminated first and is revealed to be comedian and ventriloquist Jeff Dunham (who, in retrospect, seems clear who was also a puppet in his altar ego). The Panther’s performance of Nina Simone’s “Feeling Good” was enough to send them into a battle royal, but the judges backed Harp when the two went head-to-head while singing “Born to Be Wild” by Steppenwolf.
So, who was the Panther? None other than “This Is How We Do It” singer Montel Jordan.
“I think Bloody Battle Royale was tough because I think Harp did his job but I did my job too,” the Grammy nominee told TheWrap. “Hopefully people will feel a little conflicted about going ahead with this fight, because Panther didn’t go down without a fight.”
Like NSYNC singer Chris Kirkpatrick, who was previously immaculate as Hummingbird on the show, Jordan has been hearing his name among judges’ guesses for the identities of past contestants for several seasons.
“I’ve been guessing on that show for years,” he said. “I thought ‘Do people really know my voice?'”
And some might have known that it was Jordan behind the mask, but the judges certainly didn’t. Instead, his stature has led him to believe that he is possibly an NBA player. For Jordan, fooling the judges was both satisfying and a little liberating.
“When my opportunity came to share different vocal styles and allow people to really hear the versatility that I’ve been able to deliver musically, Mask became, for me, a liberating opportunity,” Jordan explained. “When I’m just Montel Jordan, people expect to hear what they expect to hear. But when Panther is singing, Montell can be whoever he wants to be.”
Of course, it helped that she had a dress fit for a king. Montell effortlessly slipped into the swagger of Panther attire (which was clad in an embellished blue and gold suit, complete with a cape and a headdress) and showcased an old classic with some Vegas flair. .
“When I actually wore the dress, my wife had a moment because it’s so royal. It’s so royal that she looked at it and she said the design team captured it in a dress that she shows me every day.” How does it look,” she joked: “That’s why we stay married.
“The Masked Singer” airs Wednesdays at 8 p.m. ET/PT.
