( crowd cheering )
Nick: It's the semi-finals on "The Masked Singer."
Please welcome your top three.
♪ Some nights I stay up
♪ Cashing in my bad luck
♪ Some nights I call it a draw
Yes!
♪ Some nights I wish that
♪ My lips could build a castle
♪ Some nights I wish they'd just fall off ♪
- Whoo! - ♪ But I still wake up
♪ I still see your ghost
♪ Oh, Lord, I'm still not sure what I stand for, oh, oh, oh ♪
♪ What do I stand for? What do I stand for? ♪
♪ Most nights, I don't know
♪ Anymore
♪ Oh, oh, oh, oh
♪ Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh
♪ This is it, boys, this is war ♪
♪ What are we waiting for?
♪ Why don't we break the rules, already? ♪
♪ I was never one to believe the hype ♪
♪ Save that for the black and white ♪
♪ Try twice as hard and I'm half as liked ♪
♪ But here they come again to jack my style ♪
- Whoo! - Wow.
♪ Yeah, some nights I wish that this all would end ♪
♪ 'Cause I could use some friends for a change ♪
♪ And some nights I'm scared you'll forget me again ♪
♪ Some nights I always win, I always win ♪
♪ But I still wake up, I still see you ghost ♪
♪ Oh, Lord, I'm still not sure what I stand for ♪
♪ What do I stand for? What do I stand for? ♪
♪ Most nights I don't know
♪ Anymore
- Nick: Incredible! - Whoo!
- Buffalos! - Yes, yes, yes, yes!
- All right, all right. Your top three, America. - Yeah!
Give it up for 'em. Buffalo, Wasp, and Strawberry Shortcake!
- Wow. - They killed it.
- Whoo! - And while you're at it, let's give some love
to Hollywood's best celebrity detectives over there, your panel.
- Hello! - Yeah!
Sadly, Rita is under the weather,
but we wish her well and we'll see her next week.
- Love you, Rita! - We love you, Rita!
So much love. Now, good luck to our top three.
Y'all can head on backstage and rest up.
It's the semi-finals, after all, y'all.
It's a big night for you.
Tonight, our three semi-finalists
battle it out for just two spots
in next week's blockbuster season finale.
- Yep. - Now, all three singers will perform.
The audience and panel will vote.
The top vote-getter will automatically advance to the finale.
The bottom two will duke it out in our surprise little showdown.
The winner lands in the finale, the loser unmasks.
- Aah! - You guys ready to get it going?
We're kicking things off with Strawberry Shortcake.
Will she find her sweet spot?
Here she is with some self reflection
on her time here in Hollywood.
Plus, some new clues.
Oh, my goodness. This season's competition has been no cakewalk,
and I'm really proud to have survived that smackdown.
Strawberry Shortcake!
What no one tells you is that like a good cake, Hollywood is layered.
Sure, it sparkles and is super fun,
but there's also so much pressure to make it big.
And it comes with a lot of rejection,
a little bit of self-doubt, and a dash of feeling
like you've poured your whole heart
into something that people might not ever see.
I think that's why so many people
start to feel disenchanted with their dreams.
That's what happened to me.
Wow, it sounds like Hollywood was really rough on her.
- Both: Yeah. - I was so triggered
by the drama of early fame
that I decided to take a long break.
I had to lose the lights to love what I do again.
Becoming Strawberry Shortcake,
I am reminded of why I started all of those years ago.
It's fun, it's silly, and it's so me.
And, sure, there's pressure to keep going to the finale,
but only because this experience has been so delicious.
I don't want it to end.
Strawberry Shortcake's with me for life.
- Aww, we love Strawberry Shortcake. - Wow.
♪ You promised the world and I fell for it ♪
Oh, wow.
♪ I put you first and you adored it ♪
♪ Set fires to my forest
♪ And you let it burn
♪ Sang off-key in my chorus
♪ 'Cause it wasn't yours
♪ I saw the signs and I ignored it ♪
♪ Rose-colored glasses, all distorted ♪
♪ Set fire to my purpose
♪ And I let it burn, you got off on the hurting ♪
♪ When it wasn't yours, yeah
♪ We'd always go into it blindly ♪
♪ I needed to lose you to find me ♪
Whoo!
♪ This dancing was killing me softly ♪
♪ I needed to hate you to love me, yeah ♪
♪ To love, love, yeah
♪ To love, yeah
♪ I needed to hate you to love me, yeah ♪
♪ To love, love, yeah
♪ To love, yeah
♪ I needed to lose you to love me ♪
♪ You promised the world and I fell for it ♪
♪ I put you first and you adored it ♪
♪ Set fires to my forest
♪ And you let it burn
♪ Sang off-key in my chorus
♪ 'Cause it wasn't yours
- ♪ Mmm, yeah - ♪ To love, love, yeah
♪ To love, love, yeah, to love, yeah ♪
- Wow! - ♪ I needed to hate you to love me, yeah ♪
♪ To love, love, yeah, to love, love, yeah ♪
♪ To love, yeah, I needed to hate you to love me, yeah ♪
♪ To love, love, to love, love ♪
♪ To love, yeah
♪ And now it's good-bye
♪ Good-bye for us
- Ken: Wow. - Jenny: Wow! Wow, Ken.
- Robin: Whoo! Okay! - Nick: Incredible.
- Okay! Okay, Shortcake! - It was beautiful.
- Ken: Strawberry! Strawberry! - ( crowd chanting ) Strawberry!
Jenny: I gotta tell ya, it was so emotional.
- Did you guys feel the power in her voice? - Wow.
The vulnerability in her voice?
You are truly a star, and thank you for coming back
in this business and bringing it to "Masked Singer."
- Ken: Well said. - Robin: Please, Jenny, well said.
I gotta fix my makeup now.
All right, Miss Strawberry Shortcake,
you've been on quite the emotional journey under the mask.
What have you learned about yourself?
I have learned that I'm resilient and strong,
and I'm just so happy to be on this stage.
Those words mean so much to me.
I love being here. This is what I love to do.
I took a long break from it, and I'm so glad I came back.
- This is where I'm supposed to be. - Wow.
- We're so glad you came back here. - Nick: Well said.
Okay, tonight, our singers have a gift for the panel.
- What? - Revealing which one of them
they have a special connection to.
Channeling Ken's favorite singer, Taylor Swift,
our contestants will be giving out friendship bracelets.
- Are you a Swiftie? - He's definitely a Swiftie.
- Yes, yes. - All right, you can sit down now, Ken.
You can sit down.
So, which panelist is Strawberry Shortcake connected to?
Let's find out. Men in Black, bring out the friendship bracelet.
( music playing )
Oh, I can't wait to see who it is!
- What is it? - Bring it right-- bring it, bring it.
Who is it? Eh, eh, eh-- what?
- What? - Ken?
Ken: What?
- For reals? - Ken has friends?
( Ken laughs )
- Ken: Press tour. - Jenny: Press tour?
Nick: Strawberry Shortcake, what can you tell us
about this friendship bracelet to Dr. Ken?
- ( laughter ) - One of the highlights of my career
was the press tour we did together.
You made me laugh the entire day.
- Oh, no. - That changes everything.
- Nick: Wow. Thank you, Men in Black. - The press tour?
- Put on the friendship bracelet. - Whoa.
You and Strawberry Shortcake are friends.
Just right off the dome, it's just coming to me
where I was on a press tour
promoting one of the "Hangover" movies
and I was on a talk show and I met Joey King,
who was promoting something else.
- Oh! - But we were in the same green room.
When you talk about the Disney clues,
she was in, like, "Oz The Great and Powerful,"
"Suite Life of Zack and Cody," I think this is Joey King.
Jenny: That's a good guess.
But based off of that clue, your connection,
I was thinking everyone from Sabrina Carpenter, Hayley Duff.
But if I want to think of someone that maybe
has been in a press tour with him.
- Yeah? - "Modern Family's" Sarah Hyland.
- Oh! Yes. - Robin: Yeah, yeah.
- Jenny: Right? - Oh, yeah, when I was on "Dr. Ken,"
- she was on "Modern Family." Yes, absolutely. - That could be it.
I'm gonna stick with Sarah Hyland then.
I think that's a great guess. She can sing.
- Jenny: I know. - Nick: Slick, what you got?
You know, when I hear Strawberry Shortcake's voice,
it does make me think of another actress
who can sing who was on "Pretty Little Liars."
- I know where you're going. - Lucy Hale.
- Ken: Yes! Yes! - That's a good one.
Did you ever do any press with her?
Absolutely, I did the TCAs with her and everybody else
when I had "Dr. Ken" on the same network,
and that's a pretty little truth.
Well, they're all really good guesses,
- and that was amazing as always. - Amazing.
Men in Black, please help her out. Head on backstage.
We'll see you soon.
They make amazing harmonies and delicious wings.
After the break, the Buffalos stampede the stage
with another dazzling performance.
♪ Who is that?
I mean, this is the semi-finals, and yet this is the first time
in the history of "The Masked Singer"
that there's only been three of us up here.
- I know. - Do you remember that?
Three panelists, three contestants.
And, you know, I mean, the thing is,
I feel like we've lost a lot of muscle here tonight
- without Rita. No offense, Ken. - None taken.
Because, like, she's so good with the clues, like Jenny.
- No offense again, Ken. - None taken again.
And she's got such a great ear.
- That one you can take offense to. - Okay. How dare you?
I just saw my ENT and he said I was gorgeous, so...
♪ Who is that?
It's the semi-finals here on "The Masked Singer,"
and the competition has never been closer.
Are the Buffalos the one to beat?
Let's find out how they feel about their incredible journey so far.
Well, well, well. Look who's so close to the finale.
Man, we've worked hard to get here,
but we're no strangers to that.
Coming up, we had to work harder than anyone.
We were constantly being told we should be something else,
something we were not, and that we would never make it.
But we didn't listen, and staying true to ourselves
was the main reason for our success.
We now know that was an important example
to set for the next generation,
and especially our children.
Yeah, our kids love to sing.
And you know what? They sound better than us.
We're like, "What have we done?
What miracle have we created?"
- So their kids sing together also? - Yes, yes.
Hearing their voices turns every day around,
and gives us a real reason to keep going.
That's right. Every decision we three Buffalos make together,
it's with them in mind, to make sure they've got all they need in this life.
And they're gonna get a real kick
out of seeing their pops up here doing their thing
dressed as three inspirational Buffalos.
Maybe one day, it'll be their turn.
Kids, we love you so much.
This is for you.
Everything is for you.
( birds and insects chirping )
( intro to "Africa" by Toto playing on stereo )
- ( volume increases ) - This is so cool!
- Whoa! - I love this song!
♪ I hear the drums echoing tonight ♪
♪ But she hears only whispers
♪ Of some quiet conversation
♪ He turns to me as if to say
♪ "Hurry, boy, it's waiting there for you" ♪
- Yeah! - Whoo!
♪ Let's go!
♪ Gonna take a lot to drag me away from you ♪
♪ There's nothing that a hundred men or more could ever do ♪
♪ I bless the rains down in Africa ♪
♪ Gonna take some time to do the things we never had ♪
- ♪ Let's go! - ♪ Ooh-ooh
- Yeah! - Oh!
♪ The wild dogs cry out into the night ♪
♪ As they grow restless longing ♪
♪ For some solitary company
♪ I seek to cure what's deep inside ♪
♪ Frightened of the thing that I've become ♪
♪ Whoa-oh, whoa!
♪ Gonna take a lot to drag me away from you ♪
- ♪ No - ♪ There's nothing that a hundred men ♪
- ♪ Or more could ever do - ( vocalizing )
♪ I bless the rains down in Africa ♪
- ♪ I bless the rains down in Africa ♪ - ♪ I, I bless the rains
- Yes! - ♪ I bless the rains down in Africa ♪
♪ Oh, oh, bless the rain
- ♪ I bless the rains down in Africa ♪ - ( vocalizing )
- Come on! - ♪ I bless the rains
♪ Down in Africa
♪ Gonna take some time to do
♪ The things we never had
♪ Ooh-ooh
- Aah! - Yeah! Yeah!
- Ken Jeong! - Whoo!
Nick: It's a stampede in here.
Oh, my God.
The Buffalos stomped through for real. Jenny, talk to 'em.
You guys are GOATs dressed as Buffalos.
- Yes! Well said. - Truly.
That performance was by far
the best performance the entire season
- of "Masked Singer" season 12. - Really? Wow!
- Absolutely. - Yes!
- Really? Wow. - Yeah.
Now, guys, you've talked about how important your bond is.
What is something that you guys would want to say
to each other right now under the mask?
Well, first I would say never in a million years
would I think I'd even be in a buffalo mask.
But I'm glad I'm doing it with my brothers
and the best friends I've ever had.
Robin: Yeah. Yeah!
- Wow. - Brotherhood!
Aww, look at that. We're seeing the bond.
They are enjoying being inside these buffalo costumes.
But you know what time it is.
It's time for a clue. You guys want one?
- Yeah! - Yes. Yes.
Which of our panel do the Buffalos
have a special connection with?
Let's find out. Men in Black, bring out the friendship bracelet.
I hope it's for me. I hope it's for me. I hope it's for me.
I hope-- it's for me!
Ken: Oh, wow.
Oh! Friendship bracelet.
Oh, you guys! It says "Donnie."
- Ken: Whoa. - Oh, Donnie.
Donnie Wahlberg. Donnie, my husband.
We go way back with Donnie,
and we also go way back with you.
- What? - Oh, with you?
Way back with Donnie and with Jenny?
Wow, I love this game so much.
And you're our clue expert, so...
You know, Donnie has toured, obviously, with so many amazing people.
We've got Backstreet Boys, 98 Degrees, Naughty by Nature.
But the one that I zero in on is Boyz II Men.
- Robin: Oh. - Ken: Oh! My God.
I mean, Boyz II Men was there when Donnie and I started dating, like, courting.
And Wanya was on a secret date with me and Donnie when no one knew about it.
- He was, like, supporting us. - Whoa.
- So I think this could be the Boyz II Men. - Oh, my God.
- We'd be so lucky. - Robin: Okay.
- So you really think-- - Think so.
- That'd be amazing. - Ken: I don't-- man.
After what you just said,
99% of me wants this to be Boyz II Men.
But 1% of Ken Jeong
is gonna go with Color Me Badd,
- and I'll tell you why. - Oh, my God!
- Let me finish. - Good night, everybody.
Ev-- let me finish! Back me up!
Everybody knows "I adore mi amore," okay?
Color Me Badd. Three people!
Color you wrong. Sit your ass down.
What? Are you kidding me?
All right, Robin, make some sense out of this.
So, last time, the Buffalos got an onstage clue from Babyface.
- Yeah. - Another incredibly talented vocal group
from the same era as Boyz II Men and Donnie's New Kids,
and happens to have Babyface's brother singing in the group is After 7.
- Oh. - Whoa!
- Oh! Okay. Okay. - That is a good guess.
It's a good guess. I mean, the only thing is, Robin,
I don't necessarily have a connection with them.
- But it's okay. - Hey, you know, Jenny, you might not remember.
- That's true. That's true. - You did a lot of fun things back then.
He's kind of right about that.
Well, either way,
I think we are in the presence of greatness.
- Come on! Come on! - Ladies and gentlemen,
- keep it going for the Buffalos! - Come on!
Men in Black, wrangle 'em up.
The Wasp is coming up.
He's blazing the stage for a buzzworthy performance. Don't go anywhere.
♪ Who is that?
- Both: Rita! - Hi, Rita.
- We miss you so much. - We miss you!
We hope you get better and we see you tomorrow.
Feel better! We miss you. We love you.
Love you, love. Rita, Rita, bo-bita, banana-lalala.
♪ Who is that?
Welcome back to the semi-finals
on "The Masked Singer."
We still have one final competitor to hear from,
and it's the quadruple threat, Wasp!
He's been an audience favorite all season long.
Let's find out what all the buzz has meant to him.
Becoming the Wasp, I've never felt so powerful.
It's brought out this super competitive edge in me
that, honestly, I haven't felt since I was a kid.
My mom knew there'd only be so many opportunities for me to get out the hood.
So when she saw a poster for a talent show, she signed me up on the spot.
- Get out of the hood. - Ooh, talent show, like "Star Search."
I was shook, but I tapped into this fire inside of me and I won the whole thing.
And an industry mogul was there to sign me on the spot. Talk about a turning point.
Being here has brought me back to when I was hungry
for a win, and it's a beautiful thing.
Tonight, I know I'm up against some steep competition.
And, man, honestly, I'm terrified to lose out
on a chance to win it all in the finale.
This golden mask is coming for the Golden Mask. Ya heard?
Ooh, it's gonna be good.
( vocalizing )
♪ For a while there, it was rough ♪
♪ Lately, I've been doing better ♪
♪ Than the last four cold Decembers I recall ♪
Whoo!
♪ I see my family every month
♪ I found a girl my parents love ♪
♪ She'll come to stay the night ♪
♪ And I think I might have it all ♪
♪ And I thank God every day
♪ For the girl He sent my way
♪ But I know the things He gives me ♪
- ♪ He can take away - Wow.
♪ And I hold you every night
♪ And that's a feeling I want to get used to ♪
♪ But there's no man as terrified ♪
♪ Than the man who stands to lose you ♪
♪ Oh, I hope I don't lose you
♪ Mm
♪ Please stay
♪ I want you, I need you, oh, God ♪
♪ Don't take
♪ These beautiful things that I've got ♪
♪ Please stay
♪ I want you, I need you, oh, God ♪
♪ Don't take
♪ These beautiful things that I've got ♪
- ♪ Whoa-oh-oh-oh - Whoo!
♪ Ooh
♪ Please stay
♪ I want you, I need you, oh, God ♪
♪ Don't take
♪ These beautiful things that I've got ♪
Robin: Wow, yeah! Yeah! Whoo!
- Three perfect performances tonight. - That was.
Wow. The Wasp came to play.
Wow, wow.
He got Ken Jeong standing up on the desk.
- Ken. - Oh, my God.
Talk to the Wasp.
Quite simply and quite frankly
your best performance of the season.
- Congratulations. - Wow.
- Robin: Outstanding. - All right, well, Mr. Wasp,
you've come a long way under the mask.
What's something that you would like to say
to all these young wasps watching you
and looking up to you right now?
Ah, I want you to remember your power.
As you get older, never forget that child you once were.
Always keep dreaming, and believe in yourself to the fullest
no matter what, how dark it gets, how many times you fall.
You can always get up and fly again. I love you.
- Wasp out here preaching. - Yeah, yeah.
All right, now it's time to find out
what panelist Wasp is connected to.
Men in Black, bring out the friendship bracelet.
He's got holes in his wings and he's still flying.
- Oh, it's for you! - Oh!
- What does it say? - Nashville.
You know, Robin, I had a blast
when we painted the town red in Nashville.
We had such a good time, you remember?
- Okay, okay. - ( laughter )
- Oh, he doesn't remember! - Put the bracelet on, Robin.
- Put it on. Put it on. - Oh, yeah, it's a friendship thingy.
Put it on! Put it on!
- Nashville. Okay, okay. - ( crowd chanting ) Put it on!
This does give me some ideas.
The first name that comes to mind who has this kind of a voice
and these kind of dance moves,
from "In the Heights" is Anthony Ramos.
- Jenny: Ooh, that's good. - Ken: Anthony Ramos is so talented.
And he also-- you know, he did "Hamilton."
So maybe the Nashville connection is he toured "Hamilton" in Nashville.
I don't remember partying with him, but I don't remember a lot.
- So-- - Ken: That's true. He does forget.
Exactly. So, I was thinking this could be someone like Maxwell.
- Ken: Oh, yeah. - Right?
But then there's also a heartbeat clue,
which is-- there's a song called "Heartbeat" from Jason Derulo.
Robin: I like Jason Derulo. That's a good guess.
- All right. I'm gonna go with Jason Derulo then. - He can do those things.
You know what I can do? Know exactly who this is.
You talk about Robin Thicke,
a great friend of yours by the name of Usher
who can sing and dance like that.
And the talent show that Usher was on was "Star Search."
- There you go. There you go! - Oh! Hey!
- Robin: Wow yeah. - Usher.
Some great guesses up there.
You're amazing, Wasp.
Go nest in your buddy Robin's dressing room.
We'll see you for the first vote.
Now I'm hearing there's one final clue...
- What? - What?
...from all of the semi-finalists to one of us.
- Say what? - More clues?
Men in Black, bring it out.
You get an extra clue.
Okay.
Let's see what it says.
Oh! It's to me.
- Of course it is. - Congratulations.
It says, "From performing with you
to attending your epic parties--"
I do know how to throw a party.
"All three of us have connections to you,
the legendary Nick Cannon."
- Well... - Whoa.
Wow. Aww, and it's all three of 'em on the bracelet.
Aww, I feel included. Thank you.
- Wait, all three? - But, Nick, you know everybody,
so that doesn't help us as a clue.
- You know everybody. - Yeah, it does not help.
And you didn't invite me to those parties.
I did, you just didn't come.
- You kicked me out of that party! - I did, I did.
Anyway, let's get back to business.
Studio audience, panel...
- Aah, I don't wanna vote! - ...you know what time it is.
Vote now for your favorite of the night.
The singer with the most votes
will automatically advance to the finals.
The bottom two singers will compete
in an epic never-before-seen showdown
for the other spot in the finale.
Who's coming out on top? Find out next.
♪ Who is that?
Strawberry Shortcake: I feel so good!
Just to go out there with a song that I love, it felt really right.
I'm the only female left, and I am serving. It's mine.
Buffalo: We sing, we perform,
we're brothers, we love what we do.
We're in it to win it and here to stay.
( grunts )
Wasp: Just trying to do a little bit of everything
that people love about the Wasp--
perform, sing, dance.
Bring it home, baby.
Let me bring home this Golden Mask.
♪ Who is that?
Welcome back to the semi-finals
- on "The Masked Singer." - Whoo!
Three finalists stand before me.
Only one is about to be gifted the dream of a lifetime.
- Aah! - Which singer is shooting
straight into next week's finale right now?
- Wow. Wow. - Hold my hands. I can't take it.
- By the closest margin... - What?
- ...we've ever had... - Robin: Wow.
- ...in the history of "The Masked Singer." - Jenny: Oh, my God.
- By less than one percent... - No way!
- Ken: Oh, my God. - ...the first singer
heading to the finale is...
Oh, my gosh. Just say it, Nick.
- It's killing me. - The first time
in "Masked Singer" history, the closest ever!
( dramatic music playing )
Wait, who is it?
( music continues )
- The Wasp! - ( fanfare )
- Wow! - Wasp, congratulations!
- Wow. - You're the number-one singer tonight.
We'll see you in the finale next week.
Y'all keep it going for the Wasp. Congratulations.
Wow. It's on, it's on.
And then there were two.
Now we've had sensational Smackdowns.
We've had monumental Battle Royales.
But tonight, we present the first ever Smack Royale!
What?
Jenny: What? Wait a minute.
- Okay. - The two singers standing before you
will go into a duel for the ages,
performing the same song back and forth in an epic duet.
What?
Their fate will be in the hands of the panel
to decide who sings in the finale
- and who's about to reveal their famous face. - Wow.
Men in Black, bring out the relic!
Robin: Wow.
Oh, my God, this is gonna be so good!
Is-- is that a Ken Jeong head?
- What is going on here? Okay. - ( laughter )
( Ken's voice echoing ) How dare you?
I was in "The Hangover"!
Nick: Time to activate
the Smack Royale!
( dramatic music playing )
I love it. Oh, my God, this is gonna be so good.
♪ Lately, I've been, I've been losing sleep ♪
♪ Dreaming about the things that we could be ♪
♪ But, baby, I've been, I've been praying hard ♪
♪ Said, "No more counting dollars, we'll be counting stars" ♪
♪ Yeah, we'll be counting stars ♪
Yeah!
♪ I see this life like a swinging vine ♪
- ♪ Swing my heart across the line ♪ - Whoo!
♪ And in my face is flashing signs ♪
♪ Seek it out and ye shall find ♪
♪ I-I-I feel something so right ♪
♪ Doing the wrong thing
♪ And I-I-I feel something so wrong ♪
- ♪ Doing the right thing - ♪ Hey, hey
♪ I couldn't lie, couldn't lie, couldn't lie ♪
♪ Everything that kills me makes me feel alive ♪
♪ Baby, I've been, I've been losing sleep ♪
♪ Dreaming about the things that we could be ♪
♪ Baby, I've been, I've been praying hard ♪
♪ Said, "No more counting dollars ♪
♪ We'll be, we'll be counting stars" ♪
♪ Oh, whoa, and take that money, watch it burn ♪
♪ Sink in the river, the lessons I've leaned ♪
♪ Take that money, watch it burn ♪
♪ Sink it in the river, the lessons I've learned ♪
- ♪ Take that money, watch it burn ♪ - Yeah!
♪ Sink it in the river, the lessons I've leaned ♪
♪ Take that money, watch it burn ♪
♪ Sink it in the river, the lessons I've leaned ♪
♪ Everything that kills me
- ♪ Makes me feel alive - ♪ Makes me feel alive
♪ Baby, I been, I been losing sleep ♪
- ♪ Dreaming about the things that we could be ♪ - ♪ Oh, whoa, whoa
♪ Lately, I've been, I've been praying hard ♪
♪ Said, "No more counting dollars ♪
♪ We'll be, we'll be counting stars" ♪
- Wow. Wow. Oh, man. - That was insane!
Nick: Wow.
Man, oh, man.
Smack Royale, indeed.
Panel, give us your thoughts.
- I am freaking out. - Wow.
This is a supergroup like I've never seen before.
This is the first time we've ever done this on "Masked Singer."
- Robin: Amazing. - This is the way nature intended it!
- Buffalos and Strawberry forced to join forces... - Right. Yeah!
...and sing a back-and-forth duet
while they're counting stars. Mwah-ha-ha-ha!
- "The Masked Singer" wins again. - Incredible!
Jenny: That's right.
The hardest decision we've ever had to make
- on "The Masked Singer" is right here on the stage. - Amazing.
- Ken: Yeah. - Nick: All right.
- Panel, who won the Smack Royale? - ( groaning )
Vote now for your favorite.
I honestly don't want anyone to go home.
After the break, we announce the singer
- who is joining Wasp in the finale... - Strawberry! Strawberry!
- ...and the other unmasked. - Buffalos! Buffalos!
It's a massive celebrity reveal next.
Jenny: This is such a hard part.
♪ Who is that?
Welcome back.
The votes are in,
and we can now reveal the results.
Oh, my God.
The winner of the Smack Royale,
securing the other spot in the finals is...
Oh, my God, you guys!
- This is so nerve-wracking. - Oh, no!
I know!
- Ken: Aww, man. - Robin: Moment of truth.
Just say it.
Buffalos!
- ( fanfare ) - Oh!
Congratulations!
Buffalos, head backstage and celebrate your victory.
We'll see you at the finale next week,
where you will compete with the Wasp.
- You were awesome. - Thank you!
Y'all keep it going for the Buffalos,
and of course keep it going for Strawberry Shortcake!
Strawberry Shortcake, we are so sorry that your journey ends here.
But we cannot wait to see which huge superstar is under this mask.
- Honestly. - But before we get to that,
panel, I need your final guesses.
Honestly, though, I want to say,
one of the most impressive runs
- and one of the most talented singers... - Truly.
...we've ever had on the show.
And your costume, the way you carried yourself,
just incredible from beginning to end.
- Agreed. Ditto. - True, true.
- Well said. - All right, so who wants to go first?
You know, I've been on a long journey with Strawberry Shortcake.
I thought maybe Rachel Zegler,
and even one of the sisters from Haim.
But the Disney clues,
the stagecoach clues, the mouse ears,
she's won Radio Disney awards.
So I'm gonna go back to Kelsea Ballerini.
- Jenny: Wow. - All right.
Great guess right there.
I mean, I was thinking everyone from Lana Del Rey,
Hayley Duff, but then that clue,
that clue that kind of threw me off
was the one to Ken, that she did a press tour with.
And the one that I can think of is,
- she was on "Modern Family." - Ken: Yeah.
She's also done some Disney voices on the cartoons.
I think this could be the amazing Sarah Hyland.
All right.
- Ken, what you got? - Well, all the clues
have been about growing up in the spotlight.
Drama mask, actor,
the Disney ears for getting her start on Disney.
Joey King got her start
on "The Suite Life of Zack and Cody"
before becoming a huge A-list star.
So I honestly believe Strawberry Shortcake is Joey King.
Jenny: Wow.
Well, I mean, you know who you've been on a press tour with, so...
- Yes. - Nick: All right, well,
those are our panel's final guesses.
Let's see if any of them are correct.
Are they even close?
Come on! One of us gotta be right.
We'll find out...
- ...after the break. - Oh!
Ken: Aww, you got me, Daddy.
♪ Who is that?
Welcome back to the semi-finals on "The Masked Singer."
Semi-finals. Big-time stuff.
Before the break, we learned Strawberry Shortcake's fate.
We love you, Strawberry Shortcake.
She's headed home-- after unmasking, of course.
The panel guessed everyone
from Kelsea Ballerini to Joey King.
Strawberry Shortcake, we need to know, who are you?
Who are you?
Audience, you know the drill. Say it with me.
( all chanting ) Take it off! Take it off!
Oh, my God, we're finally gonna find out who this is!
- ( chanting continues ) - ♪ Who
- I have no idea who this is. - ♪ I really wanna know
- ♪ Come on, tell me, who are you? ♪ - Who is it?
Oh, my God, oh, my God, oh, my God! Aah!
Actress, singer, and songwriter,
and one half of Aly & AJ!
- AJ Michalka! - Oh, my God!
- AJ! - Jenny: No way!
- Robin: What? - Nick: Wow!
Robin: Wow.
- Good to see you. - You, too. Hi, guys.
I haven't seen you since you were, like, this--
- I know, really little. - You were-- it was a long time ago.
- Wow, this is-- - AJ!
- Hi! - I know you!
- We had a show on the air. - Ken, how did you not know this was AJ?
Wow, that just takes me back.
When I had my sitcom "Dr. Ken,"
AJ was on "The Goldbergs" with Hayley Orrantia...
- Yes! - ...also from "The Goldbergs."
- The ambassador. - And I totally remember
- doing the press tour together. - Oh, my God.
- Much love to you, and incredible job! - Jenny: Incredible!
- Yes! - Ken: Incredible.
- Thank you. - I mean that.
You made every person in here
feel something real with your performances.
What made you do "The Masked Singer"?
I had never really sang on my own.
I've been in a band with my sister for years.
- Wow. - And we took a really long break from music.
We've now come back since 2017.
We are making a new album right now.
And I've never done anything on my own like this,
so I just wanted to challenge myself.
My sister just had a baby, so I was like,
I'm doing this for her and her son.
So that was Aly who called in on the phone.
- That was my sister Aly. - Oh, my God.
- Of course, Aly & AJ. - You are a phenomenal singer.
One of the best voices we've ever had on the show.
- For real. - Yes, absolutely.
That means a lot coming from Robin Thicke, too.
- Robin: Great job. - Thank you. Thank you so much.
Is there anything that you would like to say
to our panel, to our audience,
to friends and family and fans watching at home?
I had a blast.
I'm blown away by you guys. You're so sweet.
This show is heartwarming and lovely and brings out
a lot of people's natural gifts on and offstage.
So thank you for having me. This has been so much fun.
I'm gonna go home and hang out with my sister and my nephew.
- Thank you. Thank you. - Yes!
- Nick: Tell 'em I said hello. - I will.
Great job. Ladies and gentlemen,
let's hear it one more time for AJ Michalka.
It has all come down to this.
The race to the Golden Mask trophy
finally comes to its epic conclusion next week
- with our finale. - Yes!
Nick: It's Wasp versus the Buffalos.
Who's it gonna be?
It's our closest competition to date.
It's gonna be one hell of a finale.
But right now, put your hands together
for the artist formerly known as Strawberry Shortcake,
AJ Michalka!
♪ It took too long, it took too long ♪
♪ It took too long for you to call back ♪
♪ Normally I would just forget that ♪
♪ Except for the fact it was my birthday ♪
♪ My stupid birthday
♪ The type of guy who doesn't see ♪
♪ What he has until she leaves
- ♪ Don't let me go - ♪ Don't let me go
♪ 'Cause without me you know you're lost ♪
♪ Wise up now or pay the cost
♪ Soon you will know
♪ You're not living till you're living ♪
- ♪ Living with me - Whoo!
♪ You're not winning till you're winning ♪
♪ Winning me
♪ This is the potential breakup song ♪
- ♪ Our album needs just one - Whoo!
♪ Oh, baby, please, please, tell me ♪
- ♪ This is the... - Jenny: Wow.
- Yeah! - Wow, what a talent!
AJ: Thank you so much.
Ken: Yeah! Love you, AJ!
- Strawberry! Strawberry! - Strawberry!