Furious ‘Masked Singer’ Star Storms off After Elimination

Macy Gray’s time on The Masked Singer UK came to a dramatic end on Saturday, Jan. 11 as the Grammy-winning R&B singer stormed off the stage after being eliminated.

Gray, 57, who was disguised as “Toad in the Hole” during her time on the celebrity singing competition, was pitted against another star disguised as “Bear” in a Sing-Off at the end of the episode. After the two went head-to-head, judges Mo Gilligan, Maya Jama, Davina McCall, Jonathan Ross and guest panelist Suranne Jones opted to save “Bear” over “Toad in the Hole,” prompting the “I Try” singer to storm off the stage before her identity was revealed.

The Sun reported that the filming of the show was then halted as scrambling producers tried for nearly an hour to coax Gray back to the stage, but the chaos wasn’t seen in the final episode. The TV audience instead saw “Toad in the Hole” return moments after she left the stage, where her identity was guessed by two of the judges ahead of the big reveal.

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After Gray’s identity was confirmed, she gave a less-than-enthusiastic interview to host Joel Dommett, who asked, “Did you have fun on the show?” In response, the vocalist said simply, “Yeah.” She added later, “You know, I’ve been singing for a long time, and now I’m a toad.” Dommett would go on to share the awkward moment on his Instagram page, writing in the caption simply, “Lol.”

The host also defended the judges’ decision to save “Bear” on BBC Radio 2, as per Metro UK, saying, “The case with Macy is she is a legend, she has a recognizable voice, and she might as well go because we all know it is her, and they put the other person through because we still don’t know who they are.”

He continued, “You can’t be vexed when you’re dressed as a toad. In my professional career – I love Macy, she is incredible, great voice – but I have never witnessed anything more funny than a six-foot toad storming off. It’s the funniest thing I’ve ever seen in my life.”

This season marks Gray’s third time on The Masked Singer, having first appeared on the show’s Australian version in 2021 as “Atlantis.” After being eliminated from the Australian season, Gray had a similar reaction to the one witnessed on Jan. 11, with judge Dave “Hughesy” Hughes revealing on radio show 2Day FM’s Morning Crew that the “Sweet Baby” artist refused to leave the show.

“Macy Gray had such passion for The Masked Singer that when she was told that she had to leave the show, which you saw last night, she refused to leave the show,” he said, as per The Sun. “She said, ‘No, I’m continuing in the show,’ and there had to be a discussion which went for quite a while as to, ‘No, you have to leave.’ She said, ‘No, I’m not leaving.’”

In 2023, Gray also appeared on the U.S. version of The Masked Singer, performing as “Snow Queen.” The soul singer made it to the finale, but finished behind season winner Ne-Yo. “It’s an awesome show, and it’s always fun with the fans,” she told the audience after being unmasked, telling the viewers to “be good to yourselves, be good to each other, don’t take no s— off nobody.”