‘The Masked Singer’: Hibiscus Unmasked as Iconic ‘Real Housewives’ Star

A Real Housewives icon was unmasked as the celebrity behind Hibiscus during Wednesday’s episode of The Masked Singer. Following her sultry One Hit Wonders night performance of “It’s Raining Men” by The Weather Girls, Hibiscus landed in the bottom next to Anteater before being eliminated from the competition. Upon her exit from the show, the floral phenomenon was revealed to have been Real Housewives of New York City alum Luann de Lesseps the whole time. 

Fans had long suspected the fan-favorite Bravo star was hiding underneath the Hibiscus costume, due in part to the clues that hinted at her true identity. “My life has been part fairytale, part soap opera and part comedy of errors – emphasis on the comedy,” she teased in her clues package. “My love for the stage stems from my childhood. I grew up in a large family and had to compete for attention, which led to my love of performing where I got all the attention I craved.”

Hibiscus continued, “I was a total late-bloomer who, after a hospital stint, became a sexy flower in the big city. I was approached in a cafe being told I looked like Sharon Stone. From there, I hobnobbed with royalty.” The clues, in addition to de Lesseps’ distinctive voice, had judge Jenny McCarthy correctly guessing the former countess when the time came, while Ken Jeong guessed Kim Cattrall, Robin Thicke picked Janice Dickinson and Nicole Scherzinger threw out Hannah Waddingham’s name.

The RHONY Legacy star gushed about her experience on The Masked Singer upon being eliminated, saying she had the “best time” before performing her 2010 single “Money Can’t Buy You Class” and exclaiming to the crowd, “I’ll see you all at my cabaret shows!” 

De Lesseps wasn’t the only Bravo star to be unmasked this season – Vanderpump Rules star Tom Sandoval was revealed to be the Diver during the Oct. 4 episode of The Masked Singer. “It hurts when I get judged by people who’ve never even met me, and I become a scapegoat for every bad dude they’ve ever known,” he said during the season premiere, hinting at the Scandoval that took over the internet earlier this year. “Getting to share my voice without the preconceived notion of who I am is really what I need right now.” After revealing his identity, the bar owner added, “This was so much fun. Being able to come out here and perform behind a mask not being judged and just being judged on my performance it was really nice. I knew I was getting guessed right away.”