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Episode 11 of The Masked Singer season 9 aired on Fox this Wednesday, April 26, at 8 pm ET. The episode featured an epic singing battle between the three singers who were saved in the competition by the "Ding Dong Keep It On" bell. Only one performer was supposed to join the quarter-finalists in the race to win the trophy.
Unfortunately, Mantis was the first to be sent home after he performed the song You Really Got Me by The Kinks. Before leaving, Mantis was unmasked and fans were shocked to see legendary actor Lou Diamond Phillips under the costume.
Lou is known for playing the role of Ritchie Valens in the La Bamba film and was most recently seen on the popular Fox series Prodigal Son as Lieutenant Gil Arroyo.
Even the judges were shocked to see Lou under the Mantis mask. Judge Robin guessed that Mantis was Dennis Quaid while Jenny felt that he was Kevin Bacon. Ken’s guess was that the Mantis is Brendan Fraser, while Nicole thought it was Steve Buscemi.
Lou impressed the audience by singing La Bamba by Los Lobos, which is an original Spanish song. The Masked Singer fans were blown away by Lou's voice and said that they "never would have guessed" his identity, given that he never sings on shows (only on stage) and often plays serious roles.
The Masked Singer fans impressed by Lou Diamond Phillips' voice
Clues on the Mantis' identity were:
- Known for his brooding persona
- Almost won an Emmy for comedy
- A published author
- The fact that Music has followed Mantis his whole career, from Broadway to the silver screen.
- Cowboy boots
- Secret agent tag
- Baseball diamond
- The movie Maverick
Lou is the author of The Tinderbox and the cowboy boots were a clue for his performance in Young Guns. The tag hinted at his popular character Mark DeSalvo and the baseball diamond hinted at his middle name, Diamond. Lou was in the movie Top Gun: Maverick, which is associated with the Maverick movie.
The Masked Singer fans failed to connect the dots to Lou's identity and were shocked to hear him sing in Spanish. They were impressed by his performance and his voice.
Lou Diamond Phillips is a Theater World Award winner
Lou Diamond Phillips, 61, is from the Philippines but was raised in Texas. He studied at Flour Bluff High School and received a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Drama from the University of Texas at Arlington.
His big break arrived in 1987 when he got a chance to play rocker Ritchie Valens in La Bamba.
Since then, he has been a part of many popular films and series like Stand and Deliver, Young Guns, The King and I, and The Big Hit. He also played Richard Ramirez in The Night Stalker in 2016. Phillips has been nominated for the Golden Globe Award and won the Theater World Award.
The Masked Singer airs on FOX every Wednesday at 8 pm ET.
