The Masked
Singer returned for the sixth week of season 9 on Wednesday, and the show embraced the fun, twang and lonesome romance of country music. Helmed by host Nick Cannon and overseen by stalwart panelists Robin Thicke, Ken Jeong, Jenny McCarthy and Nicole Scherzinger, Wednesday's "Country Night" episode saw two new contestants -- The Macaw and The Axolotl -- duke it out against returning singer The Fairy for their shot at moving on in the competition. So who went home and who moved on? Each week, ET will be
BREAKING down the biggest moments and most surprising unmaskings in each new episode of the hit reality singing competition series. Here's how Wednesday's "Country Night" shook out, when all the songs were sung and votes were cast! The Masked Singer Week 6 -- "Country Night" The Fairy kicked things off in cowboy boot style with a stunning and beautiful rendition of Bonnie Raitt's "Angel From Montgomery" which left the panel in awe of her talent and vocal styling. It was a performance befitting a reigning champ and set the bar high for the night. The character with possibly the cutest costume of the entire season hit the stage next, The Axolotl, and the pink, frilled amphibian delivered a sweet cover of "Can't Fight the Moonlight" by LeAnn Rimes -- who also happens to be a Masked Singer Golden Mask winner, from back in Season 4. Finally, The Macaw flew out for a powerful performance of "Live Like You Were Dying" by Tim McGraw that won over the audience and left the panel very impressed. After all the votes were counted, the adorable Axolotl was, sadly, the first to get kicked off. After the panelists all made their final guesses, The Axolotl unmasked and revealed herself to be
WWE star Alexa Bliss! "This was something that was personal for me because I have actually crippling stage fright when it comes to singing," Bliss shared with the panel. "I actually cried backstage before coming out here 'cause I was just so nervous. But I am just so proud of myself, because I conquered my fear!" This left The Fairy and The Macaw facing off in a Battle Royal, and both stars delivered skillful and, ironically, impressive versions of Shania Twain's "That Don't Impress Me Much." However, the panel was clearly more impressed by The Macaw, who was crowned the victor and brought The Fairy's run to an end. After all the final guesses to The Fairy's identity were made -- and all were way off -- The Fairy revealed her true self,
Actress Holly Robinson Peete! "How did you not know it was me?" Peete asked in disbelief. "I feel like I know everybody on that panel!" The Masked Singer Week 5 -- " Sesame Street Night" Returning champ The Squirrel kicked the fun, Sesame Street -themed episode off with a fun, skillful performance of "Just the Two of Us" by Grover
Washington Jr. featuring Bill Withers. It was a soulful tune befitting the meaningful legacy of Elmo, Big Bird and all the beloved Sesame Street characters who made guest appearances throughout the night. The Fairy was the next singer to hit the stage -- in a costume that Scherzinger said made it look like she's "going to Coachella" -- and she wowed with a fun, powerfully sung rendition of Linda Ronstadt's "You're No Good." Last but not least, The Jackalope came out to try and make people believe in cryptids. The costumed contestant delivered a fiery, high-energy performance of Shakira's "Whenever, Wherever." It left Scherzinger stunned and delighted the audience. After all the votes were counted, The Squirrel was the first to get voted off, meaning her efforts to get to the finale came to an end. After the panel made their final guesses, The Squirrel unmasked and revealed herself to be none other than actress (and one of Jeong's former co-stars) Malin Akerman! Next, The Jackalope and The Fairy faced off in a Battle Royal, and both stars delivered skillful, and very similar, covers of "On Top of the World" by Imagine Dragons. This made the panel's decision very difficult, but they ultimately voted to crown The Fairy as the week's winner and send The Jackalope packing. After the regal Big Bird anointed The Fairy as the champ, it was time for The Jackalope to unmask, and she revealed herself to be actress and internet star Lele Pons! The Masked Singer Week 4 -- "DC Superheroes Night" The Gargoyle was the first new contestant to take the stage, and he wowed with a beautiful and moving rendition of Charlie Puth's "One Call Away," which felt incredibly on-theme -- not just because it literally namechecks Superman, but just the general everyday heroism vibe of the tune as a whole. The Wolf, with a much more gravelly tone, positioned himself as a darker anti-hero with his seasoned and experienced cover of The Doors' "Break on Through" which definitely embraced the grittier DC comics aesthetic. Finally, The Squirrel was the last to hop on the stage and she delivered a fun and energetic cover of Pink's "Try" that embodied the heroic nature of the night's theme perfectly (although her costume closely evoked the Marvel comics' character Squirrel Girl, but that's obviously just a coincidence). After all the votes were counted, The Wolf was the first to get voted off, and he revealed himself to be none other than
music legend and best-selling artist Michael Bolton! This left The Gargoyle and The Squirrel to face off in a Battle Royale round, where each was made to sing different parts of the same song. Keeping to the theme, both contestants belted out lines from the 3 Doors Down song "Kryptonite," and while both impressed the panel, they ended up voting for The Squirrel to move on, and The Gargoyle to unmask. However -- for the second week in a row -- the panel felt it wasn't time for The Gargoyle to go home just yet! Instead, they rang the "Ding Dong, Leave It On" bell -- which was previously introduced as a one-time-only thing, but apparently not. So, fans will still have to wait to see which silky-voiced singer is under the Gargoyle mask. The Masked Singer Week 3 -- "New York Night" Medusa made her third appearance this season -- after wowing with incredible range twice before -- and faced off against two new hopefuls as she fought for her place in the finals. Medusa was the first to hit the stage, and belted out an entirely original and unique cover of Frank Sinatra's "New York New York" that stunned the panel. The Polar Bear hit the stage next, and brought a lot of personality to his take on Blondie's iconic retro hit "Rapture." Finally, the
California Roll delivered the final surprise for the night when it turns out that they are actually the California Rolls! Five performers together as one act, and together they delivered an exciting cover of Lady Gaga's "Paparazzi." After all the votes were counted, The Polar Bear was the first to get voted off, and he revealed himself to be none other than hip-hop legend Grandmaster Flash! When asked why he wanted to be on the show, Grandmaster Flash shared, "In the world today, there is a lot of sadness, and when I saw this show on a rough day... It actually had me laughing! And it allows you to let your guard down and just have fun. It's a great show." After the first unmasking, The California Rolls and Medusa went head to head in a battle royale which saw each of them belting out different verses from Billy Joel's "Uptown Girl," and each gave very different takes on the same tune. When the time came to vote, the panel chose The California Rolls to move on to the next round of the competition. However, while things looked bleak for Medusa, a last-minute change of heart saw the panel use their one-time-only "Ding Dong, Leave It On" bell!. This meant Medusa didn't have to unmask but would get another chance to battle her way back into the competition. The Masked Singer Week 2 -- "ABBA Night" After stunning the judges last week, Medusa was the first to take the stage this time around, and she showed off a totally different side to her incredible voice, belting out ABBA's iconic "Dancing
Queen." Night Owl took the stage next, wowing with her feathery costume before blowing the judges away with a clearly skillful and likely professionally trained rendition of the ABBA hit "Fernando." Rock Lobster was the last of the night's three contestants, and he was clearly there for comedic effect as he performed an entertainingly chaotic cover of ABBA's "SOS" that had the judges cracking up. Unsurprisingly, Rock Lobster was the first to get voted off (as is so often the case with the comedic contestants) and he revealed himself to be none other than America's Got Talent judge Howie Mandel. Mandel shared some love with Cannon -- who used to host AGT years ago -- and explained why he wanted to be on the show, sharing, "When you watch this show, this is fun, and I just wanted to have fun!" After Mandel's unmasking, Night Owl and Medusa went head to head in a battle royale which saw each of them belting out different verses from ABBA's aptly named "The Winner Takes It All." For the second week in a row, Medusa emerged victorious, and Night Owl got sent to the chopping block. After all the final guesses were made, Night Owl unmasked and revealed herself as pop icon Debbie Gibson! And, as it turns out, her involvement with the show was surprisingly unexpected even to Gibson herself. "So not to bring the tone down, but to keep it real -- I lost my mom one year ago and it was the anniversary yesterday, and I was flying back from
New York. I was boarding the plane and my manager texts, and she goes, 'Somebody might be sick and can't do the show. You'd have to be in LA tomorrow,'" Gibson shared. "So, got in late last night, and I'm so glad I got to be here with you guys today." The Masked Singer Week 1 -- "Premiere Night" The new season introduced fans to the first three performers that fans would get to meet this time around -- The Mustang, The Gnome and Medusa. The Mustang was the first character to hit the stage, rocking an all-black, leather ensemble and a giant, red-eyed horse head. She chose to showcase her vulnerable voice with a cover of Whitesnake's "Here I Go Again" which earned a massive standing ovation from the audience. The Gnome brought a smile to everyone with a lighthearted rendition of Billie Holiday's "When You're Smiling" which was a total delight from start to finish. Medusa hit the stage rocking a next-level costume covered in snakes and absolutely dripping with mystery and intrigue. With a voice both delicate and heartbreaking, while simultaneously powerful and full-bore rock n' roll, Medusa performed a cover of Billie Eilish's "Happier Than Ever," which might be the most jaw-dropping performance in recent memory. Sadly, it was The Gnome who was the first to go -- but his unmasking proved to be one of the most memorable in Masked Singer history. The Gnome revealed himself to be none other than screen legend and
comedy icon Dick Van Dyke! After the unmasking -- which caused Scherzinger to burst into tears of joy -- the Mary Poppins star bid farewell with a performance of "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious" and showed off his dance moves to the amazement of everyone in the audience. Next up, The Mustang and Medusa faced off in a Battle Royal round, where each had to sing a verse from Rihanna's "Diamonds." Both stars brought real skill and talent to the challenge, but Medusa managed to eke out a win. This means Medusa moves on to face off against another group of contestants, while The Mustang had to unmask. As it turns out, The Mustang was, in fact, celebrated country singer Sara Evans! The Masked Singer airs Wednesdays at 8 p.m. ET/PT on Fox. 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! GET THE ET NEWSLETTER Email By signing up, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy Related Gallery 'The Masked Singer' Stars Revealed! RELATED CONTENT: 'Masked Singer' Season 9 Kicks Kicks Off With an Icon Getting Unmasked ‘Masked Singer’ Season 9: Go Behind the Scenes on Set! (Exclusive) 'The Masked Singer' Crowns Season 8 Champion -- See Who Got Unmasked! 'Masked Singer' Judges Roast Nick Cannon Over His 11 Children ™ & © 2023 CBS Studios Inc. and CBS Interactive Inc., Paramount companies. All Rights Reserved.