“The Masked Singer” reveals Showbird as beloved sitcom star — who has an update on that long-awaited movie

Plus, she hilariously roasts her Masked Ambassador: "Who would choose Joel McHale?"

Warning: This article contains spoilers for The Masked Singer season 12, episode 2, "Footloose Night"

Everybody kick off the Sunday shoes and cut loose for Footloose Night on The Masked Singer!

The first themed episode of season 12 celebrated the 40th anniversary of the hit film, and naturally this meant getting things started with a performance of Kenny Loggins' "Footloose" by Robin Thicke. The film's star, Kevin Bacon, also appeared via video to express his gratitude and love for the movie and to TMS for honoring it on Wednesday.

In the spirit of the theme, all of the masked celebrities were tasked with singing a song that appeared on the Footloose soundtrack, or its special 15th anniversary collectors' edition. To that end, Showbird started the proceedings with “Let’s Hear It for the Boy” by Deniece Williams, which was followed up by Ship singing “Almost Paradise” by Mike Reno & Ann Wilson, Woodpecker's performance of “Holding Out for a Hero” by Bonnie Tyler, and Buffalo closing things out with "Waiting for a Girl Like You” by Foreigner.

After it was all said and done Showbird was kicked out of the roost, and two of the panelists, Ken Jeong and Thicke, correctly guessed what the internet knew instantly — that the showy avian mask was hiding none other than Jeong's Community costar Yvette Nicole Brown. This means, since he also guessed correctly last week, that Jeong starts off the season with a perfect record. Maybe instead of "No, Ken!" the crowd should start chanting "Go, Ken!" instead. (For the record, the women didn't fare as well, with Jenny McCarthy-Wahlberg guessing Taraji P. Henson and Rita Ora picking Sheila E.)

Related: The Masked Singer season 12 reveals: See every unmasked celebrity contestant

Ahead of the sweet reveal, which saw Jeong join Brown onstage, Entertainment Weekly caught up with the Showbird herself to get all the details on that long-gestating Community movie, her thoughts on a Drake & Josh reboot, and why she thought having Joel McHale as her Masked Ambassador was "so on the nose."

ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: Masked Ambassadors are new this season, how did it all work? Did Joel know it was you? Did you know he was doing it on your behalf? Did you have any say who your ambassador was?

YVETTE NICOLE BROWN: I didn't have any say in any of it, because who would choose Joel McHale? No, I'm kidding. I'm kidding. No, I didn't have any say in it, but I was happy to hear that it was Joel. And Joel knew it was me, and I knew that he was the one introducing me to the Masked Singer audience. I just thought it was so on the nose. I'm like, Ken's the judge. Ken knows me. Ken knows Joel. We all know each other really well. So I thought it was on the nose, but I thought it was great, and I was honored that it was Joel that introduced me to the world.

I definitely immediately thought it was you when Joel popped up.

I think it was the worst kept secret ever. I mean, I have a Google alert for myself. I think most people probably do. And so after the first episode, it just populated with "Showbird is Yvette Nicole Brown." There was no, "Who is Showbird?" It was like, "It's Yvette." Okay, moving on. I was like, okay... So yeah I think it was pretty much known.

Related: The Masked Singer unmasks Leaf Sheep as football legend in season 12 premiere that's full of wild surprises

By the way, are those some of Showbird's feathers I'm seeing in this Zoom frame? The show never lets people take their costumes home!

Yes, these are little feathers. My wonderful dressers when I was leaving, they grabbed a few and gave 'em to me. I hope no one's fired. [Laughs] But you know what? She had so many feathers that these probably are some that they just grabbed off the floor as I walked off because I was losing feathers all the time. So they probably didn't take it from that costume. But I'm happy I have a little bit of her with me.

So have you had the chance to talk to Ken or Joel about the show yet?

It's so funny. I know that Joel knew that he was my ambassador, and I know that Joel knew that I knew that he was my ambassador. But the NDA they have you sign is so ironclad that I literally have not said a peep. After I'm revealed and everyone knows, then I will call 'em and say, how did that work out? But I'm not saying anything because I would like to keep my left pinky toe, and that was what was on the line if I spilled the beans.

And how much hell would you have given Ken if he hadn't guessed you? He has a history of not guessing his costars correctly...

Well, also he has a history of saying my name at least three times every season. So I honestly can't be mad if I'm finally there and he didn't say it. He's banked enough Yvette Nicole Browns to last a lifetime for me.

Speaking of Ken and Joel and Community... are there any updates you can share on the movie? Have you seen the script? What's happening with that?

Well, I can tell you that it's absolutely happening. So I think at this point people are like, "They're just playing with us. They're pulling our chain." We're not pulling your chain. It's actually going to happen. We're all involved, we're all excited. And it literally is just a scheduling thing. And I can also say I've read a script. There is a script. It exists. It's a full script. It's funny, it's a proper Community episode stretched out into movie form. It probably will be changing because Dan Harmon is a great rewriter. He and Andrew Guest are our writers, and they're going to be rewriting it and changing it and making it fit each of us perfectly where the characters are now. And so now it's just puzzle pieces, putting these amazing puzzle pieces together to make sure that we're all there.

Did The Masked Singer, between your prior music career and all of the familiar faces, take you down memory lane in ways you didn't expect?

Yeah, it took me back to my years as a singer. I started as a singer, so I got to dip a toe back into that water and remember what it was like to try to craft a song and make it work for you and find where it should sit right in your voice. Because the first song I sang, "Just Fine" by Mary J. Blige, is a very fast song, and when adrenaline hits, you're already just like, ehhh. So I worked with the great vocal coach I had, and she helped me figure out the best way to sing the two songs I was blessed to sing. And we had a third one ready to go. That would've been really great. I'm really sad I didn't get to do my third song, but it was really wonderful. The entire experience was just really wonderful.

Related: Everything to know about The Masked Singer season 12: From celebrity ambassadors to all-new clues

What was the third song?

"Best of My Love" by the Emotions. It was the [Soundtrack of My Life Night], and that is literally the first song I ever remember singing. So it was really awesome to almost get to do that. And then also there was a clue package for that song that would've revealed something else about someone else in the competition. So I'm kind of sad that connection wasn't ever told. Once the season is over, I will share that, but I'm going to wait until the season's up to share that. I don't want to spoil the show for anybody.

Do you have plans to get back into making music?

I joked a little earlier that I think I have a Christmas EP in me. Maybe "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" and "Jingle Bells" and here you go, everybody. And maybe give it out to friends as a Christmas gift. I love singing. I really do. And now that I've done this and gotten over the hump of actually allowing myself to do it again, I think I probably will sing somewhere again as myself.

Maybe the Community movie soundtrack needs a song.

That'd still be [my character] Shirley though. That'd be me singing it as Shirley. I think I want to get back and see what it would be like to sing as myself in a studio. That would be fun.

One of your clues on Masked Singer was a popcorn bucket, and I don't think the panel necessarily took it this way, but I think there was a subset of fans that only saw that as a reference to...

Drake & Josh, absolutely. It was absolutely that. And then there's the gavel. There's a gavel from A Black Lady Sketch Show. I played a judge on Black Lady Sketch Show, that's where I'm Emmy nominated for that role. And then there was Advanced Singing 101, which was a nod to Community. A textbook was there. So I think if you're looking, it's right there. With the popcorn, I'm like any kid under 35 that ever watched Nickelodeon is going to say, "Popcorn. That's Helen, Yvette Nicole Brown, done. Final answer."

Does that surprise you?

No, because it still airs and every three years a new generation is taking the ride for the first time. So I literally have Drake & Josh fans that are 10 to 35 at this point, and every year it'll be 10 to 36 next year and 10 to 37 the year after. My babies just keep getting older and young ones come in. But my ones that loved me when they were kids, they just keep coming. I'll be 80 with a 60-year-old going, "I loved you on Drake & Josh." I just know it. And it's wonderful. I love that I'm a touchstone for generations of kids. That's one of my greatest... that touches my heart the most, that children can trust me and I'm one of their adults that they loved when they were kids. And they can trust me, which makes me — I've tried to live a life that honors the idea that children will be watching me. I've done my best to live a life that they can follow me.

Maybe that one will get the reboot treatment as well. 

Yeah, I heard — I think Drake [Bell] and Josh [Peck] both want to, so it would be nice to see where they are now as adults, if they're married with kids, and what that would be like for them.

Related: Community star Yvette Nicole Brown announces engagement live on The View

You said on Masked Singer that you've been asked to do the show many times and it just never worked out. Was it anything like you thought it would be?

It was nothing like I imagined and everything I needed. I was never going to do the show. And I've said this to Ken, I've said this to Craig [Plestis], the producer, I just didn't sing. I told 'em I don't sing as myself anymore and I don't want to do it. And I was grateful when they threw me the bone of letting me be a guest judge, because I loved to do the show. I just didn't want to be one of the singers. And this year was a tough year. I am a caregiver and my dad had some struggles and I needed something joyous and light to be a part of. I wish, now in retrospect, I wish that my life had been more open and I could have really poured more into being on the show and maybe I would've lasted longer on the show. But it was right, and exactly what I needed at the time that I needed it. And I was enveloped in love and protection. And if there's any performers that have been asked to do the show like I was asked and are afraid to do it, I say, do it. It is the most fun you will have and you are safe. It's a safe space to sing and perform and be a weird creature for a few episodes. It's really great.

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