After exciting weeks of competition featuring a slew of costumed contestants, Fox's hit show crowned a new winner on Wednesday!
*Caution: Spoilers ahead!
The Masked Singer season 7 crowned an all-new champion on Wednesday! After some truly breathtaking performances from the final three contestants, one costumed crooner ended up walking away with the Golden Mask Trophy!
First, we're going to look at how the night unfolded. Scroll down to find out who won and who came up just short.
Going back to tradition -- after having a finale with just two contestants last season -- this season's big showdown pitted the top three singers against one another for an ultimate musical showdown.
The Prince, The Ringmaster and The Firefly -- who all happened to be from Team Good -- each took to the stage to sing their hearts out, with The Prince kicking off the evening.
The frog-costumed crooner wowed with a stunning performance of Coldplay's "Viva La Vida" that garnered a well-earned standing ovation from the panel and the audience.
However, with this being the final, all three contestants brought their A-game, and Firefly upped the ante with a sultry, jaw-dropping rendition of "Bag Girl" by Usher. She showed off her moves and danced with the panel, leading panelist Nicole Scherzinger to gush, "Tonight, at this finale, you are the one to beat."
The Ringmaster then took the stage and brought the first round of the finale to an emotional close with a powerful performance of Sara Bareilles' "Gravity" that saw her hitting some truly next-level high notes. Her number was met with unmitigated love, and panelist Robin Thicke praised her voice, calling Ringmaster "a revelation."
After all three songs were sung, it was time to vote. Nick Cannon revealed who would be ending their Masked Singer journey in third place, and who would be hitting the stage one more time for a musical showdown.
With all votes cast, the season seven third-place winner was... The Prince!
Before The Prince unmasked, however, the show's panel of celebrity "detectives" got one last shot to guess his identity. Thicke guessed it was Ricky Martin, Jenny McCarthy suggested Ben Platt, Ken Jeong predicted it might be Matt Bomer. However, it was Scherzinger who managed to hit the nail on the bed.
After the traditional chants of "Take it off", The Prince proved to be none other than Call Me Kat, American Horror Story and 30 Rock star Cheyenne Jackson!
ET spoke with Jackson on Wednesday, and the actor and Broadway star explained why he wanted to be a part of the show in the first place.
"Most people only know me for one thing.... everybody has their thing that they know you from. But singing was my main thing. That's what got me out of my little hometown and got me to New York," Jackson shared. "So, doing this bananas show, that was the goal. To be like, 'Let's not have it be about your face or your body, or what people think about you, but just about the music.'"
Despite not taking home the Golden Mask Trophy, Jackson said he's "really stoked" with his whole experience.
"I didn't know what to expect, and I kind of had my doubts... like even if people were singing live on the show," he recalled. "But then I got there, and I realized, 'Oh crap, this is real. This is live!'"
"It's hard, it is hard to sing in that stuff... and that is the part that you can't really tell on TV," he added. "It was a really fun experiment at first, and then I ended up getting really competitive."
After Jackson bid farewell, it came down to The Ringmaster and The Firefly, who would both perform one last time in a bid for audience votes.
The Firefly kicked things off and swung for the fences, belting out a cover of Thicke's own song, "Lost Without U." It won over the artist himself and all the other panelists as well.
Ringmaster, meanwhile, returned with an upbeat and high-energy cover of Katy Perry's "Waking Up In Vegas" that had stage presence and personality and seemed to be a hit with the audience.
So, after another round of voting, the Season 7 champion of The Masked Singer is...
... The Firefly!
However, before the grand unmasking and presentation of the Golden Mask Trophy, fans first got to find out the true identity of The Ringmaster. The panelists once again made their final guesses, and this time everyone was off, with suggestions including Maren Morris, Lucy Hale, Hailee Steinfeld and Hayden Panettiere.
So, who was really under The Ringmaster mask this whole season? The singer revealed herself to be The Goldbergs star and songstress Hayley Orrantia!
ET also spoke with Orrantia on Wednesday, and she explained how, despite coming in second, she still took home a very meaningful trophy.
"I've actually never won a trophy, so I kept thinking, man how cool would it be if Masked Singer would be my first trophy," she recalled. "So when I didn't get it, [my boyfriend] was so sweet and he had this little trophy made with a little microphone that said like, 'Breakout Star of 2022.'"
"So I get to go home with a trophy, what's honestly even more special than I thought it could be," she added.
Orrantia also reflected on performing inside a costume, and explained that, unlike many other Masked Singer contestants, being anonymous actually made her more nervous.
"It was almost really more nerve-racking, to be honest... maybe it was the pressure of being on a stage where I'm getting to sing as a solo artist? But every time I would go out there, I was shocked myself at how nervous I would get," she shared. "It wasn't until I got unmasked and I got to perform a little bit at the end, where it felt a little more uncomfortable."
After Orrantia bid farewell with her fun, unmasked encore, all that was left was the final unmasking -- and the very last guesses of the season from the panel. This time, it was Thicke and McCarthy's turn to guess it out of the park, leaving Ken -- who guesses Alicia Keys -- zero for three. Scherzinger also took a big swing and a miss predicting it was Monica.
In fact, The Firefly was actually superstar Teyana Taylor!
Speaking with the panel after her unmasking, Cannon asked why she chose to be a part of the series.
"Aw, man, I was like, this would be something really nice to do, and just be able to just sing, and it'd be fun again, and there's just no judgment, you know?" she shared. "Nobody knows who's behind the mask. You just get to sing your heart out."
She also addressed the fact that her husband, Iman Shumpert, just won the most recent season of Dancing With the Stars, making their house filled with unique trophies. Taylor laughed, and shared, "Yeah, I got to put this next to the Mirror Ball."
Congrats to the latest Golden Mask Trophy winner!
Check out the gallery below for a look at every single contestant who has ever had to "take it off" throughout the history of the show!
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