Kandi Burruss made history when she became the first woman to win “The Masked Singer” on Wednesday’s finale. The Grammy-winning singer-songwriter took down the Turtle (Jesse McCartney) and the Frog (Bow Wow) to win the Season 3 title and the coveted Golden Mask trophy. Panelists Jenny McCarthy and Robin Thicke both correctly guessed her identity, but Ken Jeong incorrectly named actress Tisha Campbell as the Night Angel while Nicole Scherzinger thought it was “Empire” star Taraji P. Henson. Watch the Night Angel’s performance of “River Deep, Mountain High” by Tina Turner above.
“It feels incredible!” exclaimed Burruss when host Nick Cannon asked her how it felt to become the first woman to win. “For a long time I really stopped singing by myself. You get negative feedback so it kind of messes with your head. I had really stopped and I really appreciate you guys for helping me build my confidence back up.”
SEE Here’s reality TV star Kandi Burruss singing ‘The Star-Spangled Banner’ on ‘Big Brother’ [WATCH]
Robin complimented Burruss’ songwriting career, calling her catalog “humbling.” “That means a lot coming from you,” Burruss responded in her post-show interview. Some of the biggest hits Burruss has written include “Bills, Bills, Bills” by Destiny’s Child, “There You Go” by Pink, “Shape of You” by Ed Sheeran and “Break Up with Your Girlfriend, I’m Bored” by Ariana Grande.
Throughout her run on “The Masked Singer,” many clues were shared to hint at the Night Angel’s true identity. The fan mail in her package hints to the TLC album, “Fanmail,” which includes the song “No Scrubs” that Burruss co-wrote. The snow globe and winter bear are clues to the “Real Housewives of Atlanta” spinoff series, “Kandi’s Ski Trip.”
Burruss broke onto the scene as part of the girl group Xscape in 1993. After the group disbanded she focused on producing and songwriting and penned a slew of hit songs for artists in various genres. In 2009 she joined “The Real Housewives of Atlanta” and also created three spinoff series — “The Kandi Factory,” “Kandi’s Wedding” and “Kandi’s Ski Trip.” In 2019 Burruss joined the second season of “Celebrity Big Brother” on CBS where she placed fifth. To date, Burruss has two solo albums — “Hey Kandi…” released in 2000 and “Kandi Koated” released in 2010.
Throughout the season Burruss performed the following songs on her way to the winner’s circle: “You Give Love a Bad Name” by Bon Jovi, “Million Reasons” by Lady Gaga, “Shout!” by the Isley Brothers, “Rise Up” by Andra Day, “Man! I Feel Like a Woman” by Shania Twain, “Black Velvet” by Alannah Myles, “Last Dance” by Donna Summer, “How to Love” by Lil Wayne and “River Deep, Mountain High” by Tina Turner.
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